Flaming Minds
by Fallen-Gravity
Summary: Chiui Youngsen, who has lived in Ryoku all her life, has had to face tragedy (with the death of her parents and brother in a sudden fire). Now, having encountered the Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric, and his brother, Alphonse Elric, Chiui has to decide what to do once she is enlisted into the military. Eventually becomes OCxCanon at Chapter 6 (Chiui x Ling Yao).
1. The Kinda Awkward Encounter

** 1908**

It was quick, too fast for Chiui Youngsen to see. One minute, her beloved parents and brother were getting away from a fire that come out of the blue. Next, her apricot eyes were looking down at their bodies in front of her, blood everywhere. She didn't know why this happened, and neither did her family.

But she knew that someone, someone out there, had planned this all along, to take away the family that Chiui held close to her heart. And now...Chiui couldn't think of this anymore, so she allowed the tears, which were at the verge of running, do their job.

She was only eight at this time, which was such a young age to experience something horrible like this. Chiui had never had any deaths in her family, so her parents and younger brother, Yosung, were the first three to start it.

She then stood up, feeling her knees trembling as she did so. She was on her knees for so long that they ached. Her eyes then averted to the burning house in front of her, which was the main place that this all happened at. She burst into tears when the house finally collapsed, taking all of its life with it, especially her parents' and brother's bodies.

Just a few minutes later, Rai, Chiui's grandmother, saw the fire and came rushing to the spotted Chiui there, choking on her tears. Rai took Chiui into her arms and calmed her down.

After Chiui told Rai what had happened, Rai started to cry, but stopped after a while had passed.

"I...wasn't expecting this to happen, child." Rai addressed to Chiui as she looked at the burnt remains. "Your mother and father, especially your brother...they were so young. Why did it have to be like this?"

"I don't know." Chiui responded, feeling tears well up in her eyes. "I'm thinking the same thing. Do you think it was an alchemist or-"

"Let's not come to that conclusion just yet, dear." Rai interrupted. She knew the redhead's father's parents despised alchemists, and passed it into Chiui's father. But Rai and Chiui's mother were different.

"Okay..." Chiui sniffed. She then fell silent for a moment, looking down at the floor. "So I guess I'm going to be living with you, Grandma?"

"Yes, dear." Rai spoke up. She then continued to hold her little granddaughter in her arms before walking to her house, which was only a few seconds away.

"It seems...to be the saving grace of this tragedy..."

It was now **1915**. Chiui had caught herself crying again, and in public no less. She didn't mean to do so, but she hated how that haunting memory of hers kept on coming at the most random times.

Just a month ago, Rai passed away unexpectedly, leaving Chiui to defend for herself now. Chiui was now fifteen, and knew that it was about time, she started defending her own self...now that she was the only surviving member of the family.

She then looked around, hoping that no one saw her. Thankfully, no one did, so with a relieved sigh, she continued her way down the street.

"...Excuse me, but what seems to be the problem?"

Chiui jumped at the voice that suddenly questioned her. Curious of who it was, she turned around. Her eyes widened when she saw a short teenager, around 16, and a tall, sturdy body of armor looking at her. The teenager with the red coat had golden hair, which was put into a small braid. His bangs started from an arch in the middle and spread out like wings. He was wearing a black colonel suit, and had gloves on his hands.

Chiui blinked, for she somehow recognized him. "Oh, um, nothing's wrong, sir." she smiled nervously. "I...just have some things on my mind, that's all." She then continued walking, and quickly turned around when she saw the teenager and the armor following her.

"...Why are you following me?" she questioned, starting to get concerned.

The guy stopped in his tracks. "Well, Colonel Roy had told me that he saw a young woman with long, bright red hair, with white streaks at the tips of her bangs and end of her hair. He added that he's met you before."

"Huh?" Chiui smiled in bewilderment. "Roy? That name doesn't sound familar. I don't think I've met him..."

"Well, you'll recgonize him when we get there." The body of armor spoke up, and grabbed her hand. She quickly gasped in response.

"G-Get where?" Chiui locked her orange eyes on the glowing eyes of the armor, which scared her. "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see." It replied. "...We apologize for having to do this, but it's Colonel Roy's orders."

Chiui looked around the main office of the building, nervous and confused. On her left was Edward Elric, the mentioned teenager from before that Chiui got the name of. On her right was Alphonse Elric, which she was surprised to find out inside the body of armor, that his soul was put inside there. It made her feel pity for him and Ed.

"So you're Chiui Youngsen." Ed spoke up, catching her attention. "You're the one whose brother and parents died in the fire, am I right?"

Chiui's eyes widened as she nodded. "Y-Yes, that's correct. How do you know that?"

Ed exhaled, and rested his hands on the back of his head. "Roy told me. He said that he had heard about the fire and a family torn apart because of it. So he had done some research and found out that it was your family that had been killed by the fire, leaving you to be the only survivor."

"Also, we know of Rai, your grandmother. " Alphonse added. "She was a colonel here before she retired. I heard that she…"

"She passed away." Chiui nodded solemnly. "…She and I were the only members of our family left. And now, with me being the last one, it makes me feel scared inside just thinking about it."

"I can see why." Alphonse responded. "That's why we had brought you here. I apologize again for us confusing you at all."

Chiui looked at him, surprised. "Oh, you didn't confuse me. Well…yeah, you guys did a little bit, but I was just…surprised."

Ed and Alphonse got quiet for a moment, thinking of what else there was to tell the redhead. The blond alchemist then locked his eyes on Chiui. "Oh, and one last thing. You'll be more surprised to find out that Roy's your cousin."

Chiui blinked. "He is….? How?" Shen then gasped when she saw that the bandaid around her forehead was taken off and now in Alphonse's hands. "H-Hey! I need that. This mark embarrasses me—"

"That's what we meant." Edward spoke up. "That mark is the same as the one on Roy's glove."

"But what does it mean?" Chiui questioned, covering her forehead with her hands. "All I know is that it just has a triangle, slamander, and a little fire on top."

"Well, that is the 'Flame Alchemist' mark." Alphonse explained. "Roy is the one and only 'Flame Alchemist' there is, and a pretty strong one at that. But it seems that there might be more than one of them, and we suppose that it's you."

Chiui's eyes widened in shock, and her mouth dropped partially open. She blinked, and thought over what Alphonse told her. "…But how is that possible? I…I've only heard of alchemy from my mother, who was an alchemist, but her husband's parents depised her of being one. She didn't list any types of alchemy, let alone it being passed down in the family."

Ed and Al glanced at each other in surprise. Al cleared his throat."Well..that's common in our world. But for her to not list any types of alchemy and not say if it was passed down to you or your brother, that is mostly unusual."

"She also might have not said it because she was afriad his parents would discover that one of her kids is an alchemist themselves." Ed theorized. "….Or that she's been wanting to say it to her kids for a long time, but never got around to it."

Al nodded in comprehension, for he believed those might be the cases. "Besides that, Roy will inform you more about it when you meet him. And speaking of which, if we don't do that, we'll be toast." Al then closed the conversation there, leading Chiui to Roy's office.

…

"Well, well, it's nice to finally meet my cousin." Roy smirked when Chiui, Ed, and Al entered his office. "I didn't know that there would be another 'Flame Alchemist', though."

Chiui noticed him looking at the mark on her forehead. "And I didn't know that there was a 'Flame Alchemist' before me as well." she attempted a compliment at her dark-haired cousin.

Roy only nodded as he got up from his desk, walking over to Chiui. "...I'm sorry to hear about what happened to your family, though. I just heard about it when I assigned this runt and Al to find you."

"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!" Edward yelled, and Alphonse tried his best to calm his big brother down.

Chiui laughed nervously. "...It's alright. I'm guessing you knew Rai, my grandmother?"

"...I did." Roy smiled, but then it soon changed to a frown. "...I hadn't joined the military yet, but she was one of the best colonels there were in Central. A lot of people admired her and made them want to join the military. But then she retired, and we never heard from her again."

Chiui fell silent for a moment. "Were you shocked when you found out that she passed away?"

"Yes, but she had lived a happy life, and died a peaceful death. But I wasn't as surprised by a good friend of mine that got killed years ago..."

His sentence trailed off into the distance, causing Chiui to tilt her head in concern. "Something wrong, Roy?"

Roy blinked, cancelling his train of thoughts and looked at his cousin. "Oh, no. Just had something on my mind, that's all."

"Okay." It was now Chiui's turn to be silent, as she thought over the confusing and awkward encounter she had with the Elric brothers. "...Say, Roy, why did you order them to bring me here? I know they told me that I'm your cousin, and you wanted to speak to me and meet me for the first time. But I feel like it's something else that you wanted to see me for."

Roy thought that over for a minute. "...Well, I was thinking of that symbol that you have on your head." He pointed to it, and Chiui got nervous, covering it with her hands again. "And there's nothing to worry about. You might be worthy to join the military."

"B-But...why?" Chiui's voice cracked. "I don't know anything about fighting and being a colonel."

"...Well, I'll teach you." Roy smiled, resting a hand on his cousin's arms. "I'm sure you'll be a good fighter. It'll also help you avenge your family's death, right?"

Chiui felt tears welling up in her eyes as a warm, reassuring smile crossed her lips. "...Right."

"Well, then." Roy clapped his hands together to move onto a different subject, causing the redhead to flinch. "I have something to do for right now, so I'll leave you with Ed. How's that?"

Chiui glanced over at Edward and Al, seeing if they approved of it. To her, it seemed that they did, but deep inside, Ed didn't like Roy's choices all that much.

Once Roy dismissed them, the three made their way into the hallway. Ed was silent until he came up with a good idea. "Say, I should introduce you to First Lieutenant Hawkeye! That'll be sure to pass the time."

Chiui looked a tad nervous when he mentioned her. "Oh, I'm sure it would." She remembered her grandmother, Rai, telling her about Hawkeye, the Lieutenant she used to work with before her retirement. She had described the blonde as a strict, but kind person. But the word "strict" is what made Chiui uneasy.

"Something wrong?" Alphonse questioned Chiui, who blinked.

"Oh, no! Not at all." Chiui smiled, laughing. "...I'm...just looking forward to meeting Hawkeye, that's all."

"Did someone mention my name?" a femine voice called, and Chiui and the other two quickly turned around.

It was Lieutenant Hawkeye. Like Roy, she was wearing a navy blue military outfit. Her blonde hair was put into a high ponytail. Chiui forgot that Rai had mentioned that as well.

"You must be Roy's cousin, Chiui." she told the teenager before Chiui could let anything escape her lips. "He told me about what happened."

"I see." Chiui didn't know what else to say to that. "And Roy said that he'll be training me, so I'm fine with that."

"I'm sure you would." Hawkeye nodded, and smiled. "I guess he's glad to have a cousin that's a Flame Alchemist."

"True." Chiui smiled, then tried to think of what else to say, but nothing clicked into her brain. "...Anyways, I was going to take a walk around the building until Cousin Roy is done with his errands."

"Good idea." The First Lieutenant smiled as well, and made her way back into the office where she was working. She looked over her shoulder at the redheaded teenager. "It was nice meeting you.

"Same to you!" Chiui waved goodbye to her, and Hawkeye did the same. Once Hawkeye closed the door behind her and resumed to her work, Ed, Al, and Chiui made their way down the hallway.

"...Say, speaking of training, are you and Alphonse trained by Roy?" Chiui asked Edward, and she flinched when Edward got a disgusted look on his face.

"...No, thankfully." Edward muttered that answer. "We were trained by . We call her 'Teacher'."

"...Okay then." Chiui nodded. "Did something happen to her? Is that why you used that past tense?"

Edward and Alphonse became silent, thinking of what happened. Edward remembered when he told Izumi about what happened when he and his brother tried to bring back their mother from the dead, how it didn't go as welll. Edward had to face the "Truth", and didn't like it at all. But Izumi had to expell them for trying to transmutate a human, since she had stick to the rules, which were unfortunately strict.

"...You can say that." Edward spoke up, having disappointment in his face.

Chiui could see the said expression on his face, and left it at that. She then heard someone making their way down the hallway, but it sounded fast and tiny. Once she saw the figure come into view, she saw it wasn't a person...it was a puppy.

"Black Hayate! Come back here!" A voice called to the said puppy, and made his way into view as well. Chiui noticed the man to be slightly shorter than she was, and had short black hair and glasses. Due to how he was running and the nervousness hinted in his voice, he seemed to have a fretful personality...but she didn't know if that held true or not.

Chiui didn't notice Black Hayate at her feet at first, but when she heard a little yip, she moved her eyes down to lock them on the puppy. She smiled warmly at seeing him, and couldn't help but pick him up. As she ran her hand smoothly across his head, she remembered her childhood, how she told her parents how she's always wanted a puppy. But her father didn't allow it, since Chiui's mother was an alchemist, and the puppy might be harmed.

_Father, why did you loathe Mother's alchemy so much? _she grumbled to herself, and then noticed that the puppy wasn't in her arms anymore, but in the black-haired Sergeant Major's arms.

"Oh, gosh. Thank you very much, m'am." The man smiled, and bowed. Chiui felt her cheeks flush a bit, since she wasn't used to be thanked as much.

"Oh, it's no problem." Chiui smiled. "The puppy's quite cute. And he seems to be friendly."

"He is," The man agreed, and petted the puppy's head as he did so, "His name is Black Hayate. Second Lieutenant Hawkeye adopted him a year ago, since I had found him in the streets and couldn't keep him where I live. He's learned to follow her strict rules, though..." he laughed nervously.

He then remembered something, and locked his black eyes on Chiui's. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself." He extended his hand out to her. "My name is Kain Fuery, but you can call me Sergeant Major Fuery if you want to."

Chiui smiled, and took his hand, shaking it. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Fuery. My name is Chiui Youngsen. I'm Roy's cousin."

When she mentioned that, Fuery's happy, optimistic expression suddenly changed to that of worry. "...Oh, well, you're quite lucky, then." he smiled, and noticed that Black Hayate was tapping his paw on Fuery's arm. "Oops. Well, sorry for the short talk, but I have to go now. Hayate is getting hungry."

And with that, he left the trio's sight.

Chiui seemed to be completely confused of why Fuery's expression changed, but Edward and Alphonse didn't seem to be surprised at all. "...Why did he get nervous like that-"

"It's a long story." The two Elric brothers said at the same time, and didn't say anything else.

"...Okay then." Chiui sighed, and looked over at Roy's door. "I wonder when Cousin Roy is going to be done with his errands."

"Well, he tends to take his time on them." Alphonse explained. "So an hour or so from now would be a good time to wait."

"Alright." Chiui nodded, and exhaled once more.

_...This is going to be a fun, yet strange day..._


	2. Fierce Training

Chiui was called by Roy when he was done with his errands. Before that had happened, Chiui was busy talking to Edward and Alphonse, exchanging parts of their pasts to each other. Edward didn't seem surprised by Chiui's, since he's already heard about it from Roy and the others. Chiui, on the other hand, was dismal when Alphonse and the Fullmetal Alchemist were taking turns explaining their past. But they didn't include their former teacher, Izumi, in it, since that was recent.

"...So where are we going for the training, cousin?" The redhead asked the Colonel as they turned around a corner of the hallway, which signaled the end of it.

The dark-haired man smirked, happy to see his cousin's interest in this. "We're going to an abandoned basement here, right behind this door." He pointed over to the door that they were coming near to.

Once Roy opened it and allowed Chiui to go in before he did, he started coughing.

"Cousin Roy, what's wrong?" Chiui grew worried, and Roy shooed it off with his hand.

"Nothing." he coughed once more before it went away. "...I just forgot that this place needs some CLEANING UP to do..." Roy glanced over to his left and saw some brooms lying against the wall. "Chiui, get one of those brooms, and help me clean all of this up."

_...A-All of this?! _Chiui was shocked, since she could see that the dust was mainly on the walls and near the door. _He wants me to help him get rid of all this dust...? _she sighed. _Edward was certainly right about him..._

Without any more dialogue, Chiui assisted in helping Roy CLEAN IT UP. In about an hour, the room was clean, and the dust was gone.

"Alright." Roy exhaled, and put his hands together, cracking his knuckles. Chiui winced a bit, since she didn't like hearing bones crack, especially when someone is popping their back. It always sent chills down her spine. "...I will need to get some training CLOTHES on. Wait here."

And with that, he left the room for his office. Chiui just waited there in silence. _I wonder if he does this a lot when he's not helping Edward or is on an important mission._

__"Okay! I'm back." Roy said, closing the door behind him. Chiui looked a bit surprised at his training outfit. It consisted of a white tank top, his military unifrom pants, and shoes. She thought that he would replace the pants and shoes with regular sweatpants and sneakers.

"Something wrong?" Roy questioned Chiui, and Chiui shook her head.

"Alright then." Roy walked over to his redheaded cousin, and stood next to her, getting into a fighting stance."Repeat after me."

Chiui watched as Roy stuck out his hand. She noticed that his arm was straight out, and his fingers were bent a little forward. His other arm was bent, and was resting gently on his side. He had one leg forward and bent, and the other one behind him and straight.

Chiui got in the same position. "Alright, good." Roy nodded, seeing that she was paying attention correctly so far. "Now, step forward and switch. Make sure when you switch hands, thrust your left arm with a powerful force."

The redhead nodded, and did what her cousin told her to do. She looked surprised when she saw that when she thrust her left arm forward with the powerful force Roy told her to use, a medium fireball came out and signed a dummy.

Chiui blinked; she was speechless. She stopped for a moment, and looked at her hand. She gasped when she saw that it was the same marking on her forehead, but it glowed orange. It quickly went away like it did when she conjured that attack.

Roy didn't seem to be surprised, but he was rather impressed. "Well, it looks like you found out your hidden powers, or in other words...the alchemist inside of you."

Chiui sharply turned around, completely astounded. "...Y-You mean...I'm a...alchemist?" She couldn't believe it. "And hidden powers? What is that supposed to mean?"

Roy tried his best to explain it to her. "Well, an alchemist is a remarkable individual that is capable of studying and practicing alchemy. And hidden powers means that you are a Flame Alchemist, just like me. But yours seems to deal more with the head than the gloves I have." He showed her the gloves that he uses for his alchemy, which were resting on a desk in the room. She looked at them in awe.

Roy then went back to talking. "...But it seems that you've never studied or praticed alchemy, but I could be wrong." his mind switched to Rai. "Say, did your grandmother or mother ever tell you about alchemy or teach you alchemy?"

"No." Chiui shook her head. "Well, Grandma and Mother told me about, but never teached me it. I know that my mother was an alchemist, and she had the ability to grow armor on her arms and use them in attacks against enemies. Grandma, on the other hand, was just a Colonel."

"...I see." Roy nodded. "Well, I believe it's not common for that to happen, but hey! It's quite interesting that happened to you, at least." The two went back to training.

It was now nearing the evening, and Chiui was beat. She didn't expect Roy to make the first training session a five four session. She had her bandaid on her forehead to cover her forehead. She got used to having it off during the training session, but when she wasn't training, she didn't feel comfortable without it on.

_...Hm...I wonder where Edward and Alphonse are now? _Chiui looked around, curious. So, she asked Hawkeye, who she happened to pass by in the hallway, where the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother are. Hawkeye said that they went to Risembool for Winry to fix Ed's arm.

"Risembool?" Chiui tilted her head. "But I thought that Winry had a job in Rush Valley with some guy named Garfiel...or so I heard from Edward when he mentioned her."

Hawkeye shrugged, for she didn't really know. "Well, if you plan to go to Risembool to meet Ed, then we will have to assist you to a bodyguard."

Chiui grinned. "Alright, that doesn't seem to be a problem..." her sentence trailed off when she noticed a shadow over her, and slowly turned around. Her orange eyes widened, and she backed away.

Before her was a tall man, with barely any hair; he had only one curl of blond hair and a mustache of the same color. He was grinning, and it was definitely creeping Chiui out.

"Greetings, ." he bowed. "I'm Major Armstrong. Nice to meet you."

"...Er, you can call me Chiui." she grinned nervously, taking his outstretched hand and shaking it. "It's...nice to meet you, too." Her mind then shifted to Edward and Alphonse. "Oh, are you the one that's going to be my bodyguard while I visit Ed and Al?"

Armstrong nodded. "Yes. Now, let's get going."

Once the two got off of the train, and Armstrong directed her to Winry's house, they stood in frond of it. Chiui was surprised; she thought that the building would be bigger, more fancier. But she was wrong.

"So this is Winry's house?" The redhead questioned the Major.

"Yes." Armstrong replied. "I'm sure Ed's busy talking to Winry right now, so we'll have to wait out here."

"Okay." After Chiui ended it with that, they stood there, waiting. But just a few minutes later, they heard stomping, and before they knew it, Ed went flying right past them, hitting his head on the ground.

Chiui saw someone appearing from behind the opened door. It was a young woman with blonde hair, which was put into a ponytail. She was wearing a regular shirt and pants, and had a cloth wrapped around her head. A wrench was in the woman's hand, which was trembling with anger.

"How could you have ruined your automail at a time like this, Ed?" she yelled as Edward grumbled, getting up.

"...Sorry, Winry, but the enemy we fought had distracted Al and I at the last minute." he exhaled in frustration, and looked away. "But he got-" **CLONK!**

****Chiui jumped, seeing that Winry had thrown the wrench at Edward, which hit him right on the head...but it surprisingly didn't knock him out.

"I swear, Edward never-" she happened to look to her left, and saw the redhead. "Oh, sorry." she laughed nervously. "Who are you?"

Chiui was speechless.

"...So you're Colonel Mustang's cousin?" Winry questioned Chiui with a curious tone. "Well, that's surprising."

"Yeah, you don't normally see another Flame Alchemist around here." Chiui laughed nervously, not knowing exactly what to say to that. "...But I really...don't consider myself an alchemist."

"I see." Pinako, who Chiui found out was Winry's grandmother nodded. "It's because the military hasn't made you a 'dog of the military'."

" 'Dog of the Military'?" Chiui looked surprised, but for some reason, felt like she already knew what that meant. She remembered her grandmother, Rai, and her mother, explain that when they were in the military, serving under Bradley...who was, unfortunately, still in power.

Pinako could see Chiui's comprehending expression, and left it at that. "...Anyways, Ed has told me a lot about you."

"He has?" Chiui looked shocked. She knew that Ed came to visit Winry, but not tell Pinako about her. "...Did he tell you...about my past?"

"Unfortunately, yes. He was talking about Roy at first, and that's when it transitioned to that." Winry nodded. "I'm sorry to hear about your parent's and your brother's death." she hesistated for a moment before continuing. "...My parents, they were killed in Ishabal during the Civil War."

"The Civil War?" Chiui was shocked. She had heard so much about it, but never knew of the teenage mechanic's parents being in it.

Winry nodded. "My parents were doctors on the Amestrian side of the war, and they were healing the Ishabalans. They didn't care if their side was fighting them, but they wanted the Ishabals to survive, to heal. They had saved the Ishabal's lives...until...until somebody that they healed...killed them..." she couldn't say anymore, and hid her face with her hands. She didn't want Chiui to see the tears coming down.

Chiui exhaled morosely, and rested a hand on her shoulder. Winry looked up at her, locking her eyes on Chiui's orange eyes. Chiui didn't say anything, but her crestfallen expression showed that she was sorry for Winry's loss. Winry replied with a small grin before wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Chiui!" a voice called from outside, and the redhead stood up right away. She started making her way to the door, but Edward beat her to it. He was outside with Alphonse and Armstrong.

"Roy needs you back at the building." Edward told her. "It's for another session of training."

Chiui let that sink into her head before she nodded. "...Alright." She looked over her shoulder at Winry and Pinako, and waved. The two smiled, with Winry's being sorrowful, and waved back.

The four then made their way back to the building.

Roy was talking to somebody on the phone, so Edward, Alphonse, and Chiui waited outside near the door of Roy's office.

"...So," Chiui spoke up, catching the Fullmetal's attention, "did Winry fix your arm?"

"After getting after for me breaking it, yes, she did." Edward exhaled, and looked at his arm. "She's been improving ever since she was Garfiel's apprentice for a while in Rush Valley."

Chiui noticed Edward sigh, and a bantam pigment appear on his cheeks. She couldn't help but giggle. Edward looked at her with a confused expression.

"Oh, so she's more than a friend?" Chiui questioned. "I can see the blush on your cheeks."

Edward gasped, and his face turned red. "W-What blush?! I-I d-don't like her! S-She's just a friend!"

"Yeah, right." Chiui and Alphonse scoffed in unison, adding a laugh to it.

Just then, they heard the door open. Roy was standing there, and motioned with his hand for Chiui to come in. Confused, Chiui came in.

"So what is it, cousin?" she questioned Roy once she sat herself in a chair. "Are you going to be training me some more today?"

Roy nodded, though it looked like something was on his mind. Chiui could tell, since he still had the phone in his hand. He saw her looking at the phone, and put it back on its holder.

He exhaled. "...Sorry. It's just that, the person on the phone sounded familiar, but wouldn't give his name at all."

"...That's strange." Chiui furrowed an eyebrow. "Well, uh, did he say why he called, or something along those lines?"

Roy shook his head. "No. He just said that he saw you in Central a while ago with your grandmother, Rai."

Chiui's eyes widened, but they soon relaxed. "...I see. Well, I don't know who that person is. But that doesn't matter right now." she looked down at the floor, then back at Roy.

Roy smiled, seeing that Chiui was smiling as well, since she was looking forward to the training.

So, without another word, Chiui continued on her training sessions with her cousin.


	3. The New Major and a New Mishap

About five weeks have passed since Chiui met Edward and the others. They found out that she was homeless after her grandmother, Rai, passed away. She had lived in an abandoned house for a few days and tried to make a living by selling some of her old belongings. But she always kept the photo of her parents, brother, and grandmother with her. It...reminded her of the awful event, but reminded her that her parents, brother, and grandmother are always with her...even though they were not on Earth's ground anymore.

So Riza offered to let Chiui stay at her place for a while, until Chiui could find a way to get some money so she can afford a house of her own one day.

"So I've heard that the training has been going really well with Colonel Mustang." The blonde Lieutenant spoke up as she poured some coffee. She offered Chiui some, but she turned it down. Chiui wasn't really a fan of coffee, but really liked tead. But Riza didn't seem to have any around.

" Yes, it has." Chiui smiled, and patted her chest with her hand. She was wearing a uniform like Riza's over her clothes, and was proud of being promoted to Major. It was because she was in a few missions with Roy, and the military saw her potential in being a possible solider with her Flame Alchemist talents. She was promoted by Bradley, though she never got to see him in person when she was promoted. She had gotten it through a letter.

"...That's good to hear." Riza smiled, and took a sip of her coffee when she sat down at the table. " I'm sure you'll like it here." she looked around the room. "It's not the best, but it's what I have for now."

"...I see." Chiui nodded, and she then sighed.

Her mind had switched to the phone call that Roy had before he allowed Chiui into his office. He had said that it was a guy, but he wouldn't tell Roy his name or who he was. But, for some odd reason, Chiui had a feeling that she knows who it is.

"Say, Hawkeye." Chiui catched the Lieutenant's attention. "Cousin Roy had a phone call to deal with while Ed, Al, and I waited for him to get off of it. When he did, he had told me about a man on the phone that was saying that he saw me somewhere, but wouldn't give any info to Roy, including his name and where he's from."

"Well, that's odd." Riza had thought over what Chiui just told her before speaking up. "But do you know who that person was?"

Chiui shook her head. "Nope. Not at all. Though I do have a strange feeling that I do."

Hawkeye shrugged. "Who knows? If you happen to come across him, it'll hit you."

Chiui smiled. "...Thanks, Riza." She then looked at the time on her watch, which read 3:40 P.M. She didn't expect to still be here talking to Riza, since Chiui just moved in a few hours ago.

"Oh, I have to get going, Riza. I was supposed to be back 5 minutes ago." she sighed, and started making her way to the door. She waved to Riza as she did so, and then closed the door behind her.

When Chiui asked Fuery about Roy, Edward, and Alphonse, he replied back, saying that he might've heard Roy needing Chiui to come to the office again for something. But he didn't remember if Edward and Alphonse needed Chiui's help at all.

So, with a salute, Chiui thanked him, and made her way to her cousin's office.

"Is this about the call, cousin?" she asked with a curious tone as she closed the door carefully behind her.

Roy was busy looking at papers when Chiui asked him. "Cousin Roy?" she called his name to catch his attention, and it worked. He looked up from the small pile of papers and put them aside.

"Sorry, what is it?" Roy asked, and Chiui did a mental facepalm. "Oh, you mean the call from a few weeks ago? Yes, I found out who it was."

Chiui's eyes beamed. "You did? I hope it's not some creeper or weird person, but what's their name?"

Roy hesitated for a moment since the person on the phone was someone he met just a few months ago, and knew what Chiui's reaction would be. "...Lin. Lin Yao."

Chiui's eyes widened. "What?! He's here? In Central?" she looked around. "I...I need to find him!"

"Don't worry." Roy smiled, and lifted up his hand so Chiui would relax. "I will take you there. I think he's somwhere close to the buildings in Central."

"...Alright." Chiui swallowed a bit of nervousness down her throat. She didn't expect someone from her past, someone that she met when she was 5-and Lin was the same age then as well-to be here. But the only thing she remembered is that last year, the year before Rai passed away, she took him to see Lin in Xing, so see how he was doing. She recognized how much he's changed, how he was taller, more musuclar, and had that casual yellow jacket, white pants, and the belt across his exposed torso. Her only reaction to that was a beet red face and her turning away before Rai helped her go back to normal and greet Lin.

Now it was Roy's turn to get Chiui out of the clouds. "Hello? Earth to cousin?"

"Eh?! Oh, gosh!" Chiui blinked, and shook her head, blushing out of embarrassment. "Sorry."

The dark-haired Colonel couldn't help but chuckle. "Alright, let's get going."

"Cousin Roy?" Chiui questioned while Roy was driving her to Central. "Do I have my bandaid over my Flame Alchemist mark?"

Roy glanced at her through the mirror for a quick moment, since he didn't want to turn around and look. "...Yes, you do." he had noticed the bandaid around the top of her forehead.

"Okay, good." Chiui sighed in relief. She didn't want Lin to find out that she was a Flame Alchemist, but she wasn't sure if he saw that when they first met. _Oh, I sure hope not._ Chiui bit her bottom lip in fear. _It would be strange for him to find out that I'm an alchemist now..._

"We're here." The redhead heard her cousin tell her once the car came to a stop. He let Chiui get out first, and then he came out. Chiui looked around, confused.

"...Wow, these buildings are so cool." Chiui smiled in awe, since she was admiring the way the buildings around her and her cousin were built. She then switched back to the matter at hand. "Anyways, you said that Lin would be somewhere here in Central. Is this the place where he'll be at?"

"I think so." Roy looked around. _But Chiui is going to be shocked of what Lin has become...with Greed possessing him. _The Colonel thought to himself for a moment. _But I think that Lin is able to be in control of his own body now, and Greed has been silent for a while...based on what Edward said. Is it because of Greed regaining his memories of his friends, or-?_

**THWACK!**

"What the?" Roy turned around quickly to see that Chiui was holding her foot in pain, since someone's head just hit her foot hard. Roy looked down to see that it was Lin, passed out.

Chiui bit her bottom lip in pain. She didn't expect Lin's head to be that hard when it collided with her foot. "...It's like granite..." she mumbled.

She then looked at Roy. "Well, this wasn't the reunion I was expecting."

"Oh, gosh. I feel so much better. Thanks, Colonel." Lin grinned after he finished devouring some food. Roy and Chiui had taken him to a nearby cafe. Chiui was hiding behind a wall, where Lin couldn't see her, but Roy could tell. He told her to go there until it was time for her to come out. They had come up with that plan while Lin was unconscious.

Chiui could feel her cheeks turning a rosy pigment, and she was holding her hands together nervously. She was rubbing her thumbs in the same manner, and looking down at the floor.

"...This...is becoming the weirdest day I've had in my life." Chiui exhaled. "First, I become a Major in the military, and my day's going fine. And then a childhood friend comes from out of nowhere, and my day changes." she thinks that over. "...Wait, isn't Lanfan supposed to be with him? I think I remember meeting her last year."

"Well, this is a surprise."

Chiui jumped, and looked to her left. She saw that it was a ninja, and was female due to their voice. But once she took the mask off, Chiui's eyes widened. "Lanfan?"

Lanfan blushed of embarrassment, and nodded. "Yes. It's been quite a while since we've last talked."

"...Yes, it has." Chiui smiled. "So, uh, how have you been?"

Lanfan glanced over at where Lin was, suddenly feeling bashful. She shook her head. "Good. Ever since Foo, my grandfather, died, I've been sad. But nevertheless, I am still serving my Prince."

"...Oh gosh, I'm sorry for your loss." Chiui didn't know that Foo had died. "But...I'm glad you're doing alright, and you are still serving Lin."

Lanfan could tell that Chiui was blusing when she mentioned Lin's name. "So you still have a crush on Lin?" she smirked.

Chiui's eyes widened. "Uh...I..." she hesistated, for she knew that Lanfan knew that she did. "Yes, I do. What about you?"

"A little." Lanfan smiled, though Chiui could tell that she was blushing a bit as well. "I...still like Lin. But...I don't think he'll become Emperor. One of his brothers will."

Chiui looked saddened. "Oh. Well, you want him to become Emperor, right? Will that happen?"

The dark-haired 15-year old shook her head. "Yes, I do. But due to something coming up all of a sudden, it's not a possibility."

The redhead was quiet for a moment, though she was confused of what Lanfan meant by "something coming up". "...I see."

"Chiui!" Chiui heard Roy call her name, and she got nervous again. She slowly peeked out from her hiding place. Lanfan put her mask back on, and walked over to Roy.

Chiui rested her hand on the wall, and her eyes met with Lin's. She quickly went back to hiding with an "Eep!" and a red face.

"...This is going to take some time." Lanfan couldn't help but chuckle. "Chiui, there's no need to be shy."

The redhead sighed. "Alright." This time, she peeked out from her hiding pace normally, and not a slow pace like before.

She then quickly tiptoed towards him, since she thought walking would take long. She then transitioned to her At Ease stance, and waved shyly.

Lin nodded. "It's nice to see you again, Chiui."

Chiui nodded, and smiled. "Same here. Um, how have you been?"

"Good." he hesitated for a moment, worried that Greed would take over his body any moment. Even though Greed has been silent since the regaining of his memories of his friends, he could turn the tables and try to kill Chiui right there on the spot. So he changed the subject. "I see you've become an alchemist."

Chiui started to feel a bit nervous, since she didn't want Lin to find out about that. But she smiled to hide the nervousness. "...Yes." She then decided to unwrap the bandaid around her forehead. Lin's eyes widened when he saw the Flame Alchemist mark on her forehead.

"You're a Flame Alchemist?" he looked surprised, and both of his eyes opened up, which kind of creeped the redhead out. "I can't believe it!"

"W-What?" Chiui flinched. "Are you mad at all?"

"No, of course not! I actually thinks it's quite awesome." Lin stood up, and looked at Roy's glove, then Chiui's forehead. "That means you two are brother and sister-"

"COUSINS!" Roy and Chiui both corrected him at the same time, causing Lin to just smile apologetically.

"Heh, sorry." he laughed. Silence then took over the four as they stood there.

"Say, Lin." Roy spoke up. "How long have you known Chiui?"

"Since childhood, at age 5." he replied. "Chiu's parents and brother came to visit, since her mother always has an interest of Xing's type of alchemy. She then heard about the Xing Empire, about the 12 kids of the Emperor-with me being the 12th, and took her family for a visit. That's when I met Chiui and Yosung, and we played for a while." he then sighed. "But I ran across her last year, and she's changed a lot."

"So have you." Chiui didn't know what else to say to that. She was trying not to blush when she said that, but Roy caught it. Chiui saw his smirk coming from a mile away, and glared at him.

Chiui then looked down at the floor once more. She then lifted her head up. "Lin, do you know what happened to my parents and brother three years after we met?"

"No." Lin shook his head. "I assume that they are still alive, as well as your grandmother, Rai."

Chiui felt tears welling up in her eyes when visions of that terrible event appeared in her mind. "Well...they're not."

Lin could see the sudden change in expression in Chiui's face, and his expression saddened. "What?! What happened?" Lanfan was wondering the same thing as well, since she didn't know about this either.

...

"Oh my gosh." was all Lin had to say after Chiui explained what happened. "That's terrible. It's sad to hear that your grandmother, Rai, passed away this year."

Chiui didn't have anything to say; she just nodded in agreement. She then noticed someone wiping her tears away, and saw it to be Lanfan. The redhead smiled, and thanked her.

"Anyways, what are you guys doing here?" Chiui questioned Lin and Lanfan, catching their attention.

"Simple. It's just to see you again after 10 years and a half." Lanfan replied, with the half meaning last year.

"...I see." Chiui nodded, and thought that over. "But for some reason, I feel like you guys came here for another reason. Is there something you guys don't want to tell me?"

Chiui could hear her cousin's feet shifting, which means that he was scooting away from the now serious conversation. Chiui was confused, but wished he didn't show his cowardly side just then.

Lin looked troubled when she had asked that. He didn't know what to say, since Greed might take the reins and cause trouble.

Seeing that Lin didn't want to say it, Lanfan went over to Chiui and whispered it to her. She told her everything about Lin, from when Greed took over him to now. Chiui looked horrified, but relieved that Lin has more control of his body now. But she became worried if Greed decided to speak up.

...It didn't seem that Greed was going to do so. _Probably regaining his memories of his friends has made him quiet and thinking if he still wants to be with his family. _Chiui sighed. _I'm pretty sure Greed is planning on rebeling, though. _

Chiui cleared her throat, so she could change the subject. "...So, uh, do you usally eat this much whenever you collapse in random places?" She had her eyes on the empty plates next to Lin.

Lin grinned, his mood seemed to brighten when Chiui asked that. "Of course! An Emperor's son, not to mention an escaped criminal, needs to eat."

Chiui understood what he said, but "escaped criminal" made her totally confused. "Er...what?"

"It's a long story." Lin laughed.

"...I see." Chiui exhaled, since she didn't have anything left to say on that. "Anyways, um, would you guys like to come with us back to Central?"

"Sure." Lin obliged. "I can't wait to meet Edward and Alphonse again. I wonder what they're up to."

"Same here." Lanfan nodded, thinking about how Edward and his brother bust out laughing when Lin told them he was the Xing Emperor's son. "But if they insult you, or try to, then they'll meet their fate with my spear." Chiui watched as a spear slipped down from inside Lanfan's sleeve, and she quickly grabbed it.

Shivers went down her spine. "...Well, that would...make sense..." she swallowed her fear, but she could tell that some of it was still there.

And so, without another word, the four made their way to the Central military building.

Meanwhile, in the Underground of Central, an impatient person was tapping his foot on the floor. He gritted his teeth.

"Problem, Envy?" Gluttony, the round one, asked the dark-green haired homunclus. The said homunclus looked at Gluttony, and looked away.

"Well, my plan has been ruined!" he rested a hand on his forehead, his fingers resting on his headband. "...I just got word from Greed while Lin is taking the reins that she is still alive. And to make it worse, she's now an Alchemist! I thought she had died along with her parents and brother."

"So she survived the fire you set up when you were disguised as her?" Gluttony rested a finger on his mouth, curious. "It doesn't seem surprising."

"No, it doesn't..." Envy's right eyebrow twitched as he now had his hand on his chin. His eyes then widened. "Wait. Dang it! I think Greed's leading us into a trap while giving us information on Chiui."

"He is?" Gluttony started to become sad. "I thought that he was on our side..."

Envy growled. "Well, he isn't. We can't really trust Greed. He's betrayed us once when he went with those friends of his. And I don't doubt that he's betraying us now." he then turned away, and walked away with a huff. "That brat should've died a long time ago."

"Wow, this place looks awesome." Lin grinned. "It's much more bigger than Garfiel's place in Rush Valley."

Edward exhaled in frustration. "Okay. Who brought this guy here?"

Chiui felt herself getting nervous. "Er...I did." She raised up her hand, and saw Edward glare at her.

"Why?" Ed growled. "Why?!"

"...Well, um..." Chiui looked away, holding her hands together. "It's a long story. But he still has that goofy, yet serious personality."

"Yeah..." Edward exhaled in frustration, which relased all of the anger inside of him. "But, I'm glad he's here."

Chiui nodded, smiling. She could feel her cheeks turning a rosy pigment, and looked away. However, Alphonse could notice her blushing.

"Hey, big brother." Alphonse elbowed his brother, and his brother gave him a confused look. But when Edward saw Chiui's now pink face, he smirked.

"Well, that is surprising." Ed said to Chiui, who quickly locked her eyes on the Fullmetal Alchemist. Her face was still pink.

"W-What is surprising?" Chiui didn't know what he meant by that at first.

_This is going to be a great revenge for her teasing me about Winry earlier... _Edward got an evil grin on his face, and Chiui had a bad feeling about it. "...You like Li-"

"Shut up!" The redhead covered his mouth, and activated her alchemy in one of her hands. "...If you...try to tease me again...I will melt your arm with my fire. Got it?"

Edward started shaking. "Uh...'kay..." Chiui relased her hold on him, and he caught his balance just in time, so he wouldn't hit the floor.

Chiui could see that the others were looking at her, and decided to go to Roy's office. He had to run a few errands, so Chiui guessed he wouldn't mind if she was in there for a while.

Alphonse and the others were quiet, and they slowly looked at Ed. "What? Did I do something wrong?" he started to get worried.

Alphonse sighed. "Well, you have to know that sometimes things like that are not needed, big brother."

"You mean the teasing?" Edward frowned. "I...I was just kidding around. I don't like if she likes Lin or not."

Alphonse looked at Roy's office door, where Chiui had went to clear her mind. "I know, big brother. But...I guess she doesn't like to be teased." he then looked at Edward. "If you don't mind, I would go like to talk to her, and tell her that you're sorry for teasing her."

Edward sighed in relief, and smiled. "Thanks, Al." He then watched as the soul in the suit of armor made his way to Roy's office.

"Hey, Chiui?" Al opened the door, and called Chiui's name.

The redhead, was still a bit angry, saw Alphonse come in. "Oh, Al! Come on in."

Seeing that she wasn't going to snap at him, he closed the door behind him and sat down in the chair next to her.

Alphonse was going to say something, but Chiui beat him to it. "...Listen. I'm sorry for how I acted out there, in front of Lanfan and Lin." she sighed. "It's just that...I don't like being teased, and I guess I kind've snapped without meaning to."

"I see." Alphonse nodded. "But...you didn't mean what you said, right?"

Chiui smiled, and laughed heartedly. "Of course not! I suspect that his automail can not be melt by fire, espeically mine. Mine is not that strong to melt auto-mail. I just said the melting part to let Ed know not to do that again." she then looked down at the floor. "But...what he said was right."

"You mean, about Lin?" Alphonse looked surprised, though Chiui couldn't tell. Chiui just nodded in reply, and told him about how long she's known Lin, and her disappointment in him not being able to become an Emperor, even with a Philospher's Stone in his hands.

Alphonse was quiet for a moment. "...Wow. So you've known him longer than Lanfan, and Lanfan and you are like sisters." he couldn't help but laugh. "I thought you two would be at each other's neck, since you share the same interest in Lin."

"True." Chiui laughed a bit as well; she couldn't help but join in. "Even though we share the same interest in Lin, we're better off as friends than rivals. And you're right, we're like sisters in a way. With my grandmother being in the Youngsen clan in Xing a long time ago, and Lanfan's clan being the neighboring clan, they got along well. So that might explain it." she then smiled, her mind setting on Lin.

Alphonse could see the smile on her face, which she didn't notice appear at first. "You've...been hiding your feelings for Lin, haven't you?"

Chiui's eyes widend as she locked her eyes on Al. "W-What?" her voice squeaked on that word. "...Um, yes. Yes, I have. But I'm pretty sure that he knows that I like him."

"But doesn't he have feelings for Lanfan?" Alphonse asked. "I mean, he's close to her and her grandfather, Foo, who is dead now."

"Yes, but I'm sure Lanfan knows that having a relationship with him will never happen." Chiui explained. "You see, even though Lanfan is one of his subjects, and he cares deeply about her, he won't be able to get together with her...since he's one of the Princes of Xing. I'm not sure if the Emperor of Xing would allow that." she then slumped in her chair. "But...it's a bummer. I can feel Lanfan's pain about that."

"...True." Alphonse sighed, and looked at the door. "Well, I came here to tell you that big brother is sorry for teasing you. He didn't mean to do that.""It's alright, Al." The redhead grinned, letting Alphonse know to leave the conversation at that.

The two then heard a knock at the door, and Chiui went to open it. When she did, she almost lost her balance. It was Major Armstrong, smiling and having a sparkle next to his eyes.  
_Geez...how can he be so creepy?_ Chiui thought, and jumped when the Major rested a hand on her shoulder. It felt more like a karate chop rather than simply resting a hand on the shoulder, so the Major looked confused when Chiui was on the floor, rubbing her shoulder as she got up.

"...Is there something wrong, Major?" Chiui questioned.

"No, not at all, Mrs. Youngsen." Armstrong bowed. "But you have been assigned on a mission with Ling to deal with a Homunculus."

"Ah, I see." Chiui nodded, and couldn't help but grin. She was excited about being assigned on a mission with her best friend, let alone fighting a Homunculus. She has heard so much about them, though she knows they're evil, and created by somebody named Father. "Then, I'll get going then with Ling."

As she curtsied to Armstrong as thanks for reminding her, she bumped into the Prince himself. But he seemed to look a bit...different, with crimson eyes. When he made eye contact with her, his eyes widened, and so did hers.

"Oh, so you must be Ling's friend." he laughed, and Chiui gasped. It was Greed, who had taken control of Ling's body all of it a sudden. But it didn't last for long.

"Greed, I thought we made an agreement!" Ling growled, taking his body back once more.

"Sorry. I just wanted to meet her, that's all." Greed smirked, with his voice being heard inside Ling's head. Ling sighed in frustration.

"Is something wrong, Ling?" Chiui tilted her head. Ling was getting annoyed by Greed suddenly deciding to pop up like that.

"...No. It's just Greed and his annoying personality." The dark-haired 15-year old gritted his teeth. "Anyways, we need to get going on our mission."

"...Right." Chiui nodded, and the two made their way down the hallway and out of the doors of the Central military building.

The redhead was quiet for a moment until Lan Fan came into her mind. She hadn't seen the girl since a few hours ago, and wondered where she might've gone to. She knows that no matter where Ling is, she'll always be at his side, no matter what...unless he has gone off somewhere and can't be found until later on.

"Say, Ling." she spoke up, catching her friend's attention. "Where is Lan Fan? I'm used to seeing her here with you."

Ling became silent for a moment as he thought over that. "Oh, she's with Ed and the others right now. I think that she needs a break now, since she's been in a lot of battles with me against the Homunculus." Ling sighed, with it sounding like it was apart from the last sentence.

Chiui noticed that. "...Ling, do you have a crush on her still? I mean, as in feelings for her?" Ling turned around and looked at her when she said that, not sure of what to say.

Ling shook his head. "No, I don't. Well...I did in the past. Our clan, the Yao clan, had been working to save her clan, and it was finally completed when I got the Philosopher's Stone." he clutched his fists when he said this, since he knew he had to pay a certain price for that. "...I..had been thinking of marrying her when I do become Emperor-I doubt that one of my brothers will, because of his behavior-but I have to remember that she's my servant; I can't marry a servant. People of our clan would look down on it, even though our clans get along well."

"...I see." Chiui's heart was broken to hear that. She then transitioned back to silence as she and Ling continued their walk.

After a while, Ling scanned the perimeter around them, and came to a halt. Chiui almost bumped into his back, but managed to stop just in time.

"There's a Homunculus around here." Ling's eyes opened as he took out his sword, getting ready to fight. Chiui blinked, and realized that she would need to take off of her bandaid around her head, since it could easily burn off with the Flame Alchemist mark on her head. So she took it off, and put it in one of her shirt pockets of her uniform. She then activated her powers.

Chiui and Ling watched as a black cat emerged from behind a building, meowing happily. However, it had glowing crimson eyes, unlike normal cats.

"...A cat?" The redhead furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "We've been waiting for a cat?"

"It's not just any cat." Ling growled, since he knew who the cat really was. "Look."

Chiui gasped when she saw small sparks of red lightning appear randomly around the cat. The front feet and hind legs turned into arms and legs. The rest of the body turned into that of an adolescent male, with the face supporting lavender eyes, a headband with a green triangle, and palm tree-like hair.

"Well..." he spoke up, catching Chiui off guard due to his voice. "I've been waiting for you to come here. It was getting quite boring."

Ling thrust his sword forward, causing his arm to go in a straight line. "Long time no see, Envy."

"Envy?" Chiui looked at her friend, confused. "Is he named after the sin 'Envy' "?

"Yes." Ling replied, locking his eyes on her. "The original seven homunculi are named after the 7 sins: Lust, Gluttony, Pride, Wrath, Envy, Greed. I don't know who the 7th one is."

"I see." Chiui focused her attention on the dark green-haired homunculus. A fireball appeared in her hands. "So why are you here, Envy?"

Envy just laughed and crossed his arms. "I was given orders by Father to kill a certain Alchemist. He doesn't want me to attack the idiot prince, since a rogue Homunculus of ours is possessing his body. But oh well." He exhaled with feign apathy.

The dark-haired 15 year old ignored the nickname Envy gave him, since Edward has used it when he and Ling were stuck in Gluttony's stomach. "What certain Alchemist are you talking about? Is it Ed?" he was worried that it might be Edward he's talking about, since the Homunculus need him for their plan.

But, to his surprise, Envy shook his head. "No, but you were very close." He then pointed to Chiui, whose eyes widened in disbelief. "I mean her."

Ling's eyes widened as well, and he stepped in front of Chiui to defend her, aiming his sword at the male homunculus. "Why? Is she another 'human sacrifice' of yours, just like Edward and Alphonse are to you guys?"

"...You could say that." Envy scoffed, and thrust his left arm outwards. The same red lightning from before appeared, but disappeared when the middle and top part of his arm turned into a scythe. "But Edward and Alphonse need to live. This girl, on the other hand, doesn't."

Chiui didn't like the look Envy had on his face. He had a malicious smirk across his lips, and his eyes were widened with anticipation...ready to end the young Flame Alchemist's life.

Envy charged at the two, and Ling got ready to dodge the attack and stab the Homunculus in the side. He knew that from the battle that he had with Envy in the forest, that he usually left himself wide open when fighting. So this was a great oppurtunity to distract him. Instead, he got of the way when Chiui suddenly sent a crescent-shaped fireball at Envy, searing his stomach.

Envy winced in pain, not expecting to be thrown off by her attack. But that was soon replaced by a laugh as the wound quickly healed. Chiui watched in horror as it happened.

_No way..._Chiui couldn't believe her eyes. _That attack was meant to wound him badly, so Ling could come in and send some attacks of his own. But...how could that wound heal so fast? He can't be-_

"Immortal?" Chiui flinched when she heard Ling ask that. He could tell by the look on her face that she was wondering how the homunculus did that. "In a way, yes. But that doesn't matter right now. We need to finish this brat off once and for all."

Envy growled. "What did you just-" a sharp gasp came from him as he got kicked in the stomach hard by Ling. He almost lost his balance, but managed to catch it just in time. Ling noticed that Envy didn't send an attack at him right away, so he immediately sliced Envy across the side, causing blood to spray out.

Envy noticed the wound and quickly covered it with his hand. He fell to the ground, landing on one knee, with the other bent. However, it made a loud thudding sound as his knees dug into the ground.

Chiui didn't seem to notice the weight Envy's knees brought down on the ground, since she sent two fireballs towards Envy. The palm tree-haired boy managed to dodge one of them, but screamed in pain as the other one collided with him, exploding on contact. The redhead didn't expect for the second attack to do that, since it never exploded before. But she had to admit that she liked the outcome.

So, she conjured another fireball, and sent it at Envy. She then snapped her fingers, and watched aas the same reaction from Envy occured. When the attack subsided, Chiui noticed that half of the skin on his face was missing, as well as some parts of the skin on his body missing as well...revealing muscles and tissue. Chiui cringed at the sight.

"Blast...it hurts." Envy growled, and tried to regain the parts of his skin that burned off. But he somehow found it hard to do. His eye that didn't burn off widened. "W-What in the world?!"

Ling smirked, adding a laugh to it. "It seems that you can't regenerate those parts of your body at the moment." Ling walked over slowly to the homounclus. "The fireball from before only did little damage in contrast to the second, which striked harder and left you wounded."

"Yeah..." Envy coughed, and turned his arm back into a scythe again. It had gone back to its normal form when he got wounded. "But you can't assume that I can't fight!"

Ling gasped when he felt the scythe go straight through his stomach, breaking a few ribs. Blood expelled from the wound as he stumbled to the floor. Chiui catched him just in time.

"Ling!" she called out to him, since his breathing was altered by the blow. "Ling, are you alright?!"

"...I'll...be alright, Chiui." The dark-haired prince smiled weakly, coughing up some blood. He realized that while he had control over his body, he couldn't heal his wounds fast enough. "Just...I'll let you take it from here." His eyes then closed as he passed out from his injuries.

Chiui's eyes widened in horror, since she just witnessed her best friend get badly wounded. She knew for sure that he wasn't dead, but it pierced her her heart to see him hurt.

Tears emerged from her eyes as she quickly turned around, her eyes glaring at Envy's. They were fired up, but not literally. The fireballs she had in her hands were covering them now, and almost up to her elbows.

"You..." she growled threatingly, walking towards the homunculus. The walking became running, and then started becoming faster by the minute. "You're going to pay!"

"Wha...?" Envy had a look of dumbfoundment on his face due to Chiui's sudden change in expression. He went to block her attacks, but found that impossible to do.

Screams of agony came from him as multiple fireballs were sent at him, exploding in a pattern. Some didn't go off, and just wounded him more; some did go off, and revealed more parts of his anatomy. When the attacks stopped, Chiui saw that he could no longer regenerate. She knew that he would die any moment now...since his breathing was very weak, and the red lightning surrounding him was very slight. But all she heard from him before he dissolved into the air was a laugh, and a smirk, which meant, "Nice try, female Flame Alchemist. I'll run into you again later."

And with that, he was gone. Chiui blinked, noticing that the rush of anger that she felt suddenly disappeared, just like that. She then turned around, and saw Ling's motionless body on the floor. She rushed over to him and tried her best to pick him up, since she didn't realize that he weighed a bit more than she did. Once she was able to put him over her shoulder-which weighed down her shoulder by a little bit-she immediately took him to Roy.

When she entered the office, the dark-haired Colonel went to say his usual "Hello.", but gasped when he saw Ling's body over her shoulder.

"W-What happened to him?" Roy stood up with a jolt, almost knocking over a few sheets of paper that were in front of him.

Chiui sighed. "It's a long story, cousin, but to make it short and sweet, Envy injured him badly. He was the..." she stopped for a moment since she forgot the name. "Homunculus. He was the homunculus that we encountered and managed to defeat...but he didn't die."

"I see." Roy had a knowing, but sorrowful look on his face. "We need to take him to the hospital immediately."

"Right!" Chiui nodded, and with her cousin's help, they rushed the Prince of Xing to the hospital.


	4. Flashbacks

Ling's vision was blurry as he came to. Sitting up carefully, he scanned the perimeter around him and saw that he was in a hospital. Half of his body was covered by a bed sheet, and his torso was covered with bandanges. He was confused about the blood stain on them at first, but then noticed Chiui sitting in a chair next to his bed.

"...Chiui..." his voice came out clear, which he had assumed would be a tad weak due to his injuries, "where am I?"

Chiui looked like she was crying, but quickly wiped the tears away from her eyes. "Oh. You're in the hospital, Ling. We...were sent on a mission to get rid of a Homunculus nearby, and you ended up getting badly injured by Envy, with 3 of your ribs being damaged severly, but not fatally."

Right after her explanation clicked into Ling's brain, it hit him. He remembered helping Chiui send the finishing blow to Envy when he was distracted by the homunculus's sudden attack. His eyes suddenly opened, and were full of anger. His eyebrows furrowed in the same manner, and he gritted his teeth.

"...I knew it." he muttered, but Chiui didn't hear it. "I...should've seen that coming. I should've protected myself, instead of letting myself get distracted!"

Ling's voice rose when he said the last sentence. He felt a small pinch of pain, and winced.

"Ling, you have to be more careful." Chiui reassured him, extending her hand towards the Prince. "If you yell like that anymore, your wound is going to worsen."

Her best friend didn't say anything, but took her outstretched hand, squeezing it. Chiui gasped, and her cheeks flushed with a rosy pigment. She then saw Ling look at her with a sudden smirk on his face. She didn't see the bantam pigment he had on his cheeks.

"...Thanks, Chiui. That made me feel better."

Chiui smiled. "You're welcome." she then rested a hand on top of Ling Yao's, and bowed her head down so he couldn't see the tears streaming down her face. "...I'm just relieved...that you made it." She lifted her head up a bit, revealing her glassy orange eyes.

She didn't have to say anything else, since Ling could connect the rest of the story in his mind. He didn't want to stay on this subject for long, so he decided on something else.

"You look very pretty in your military uniform." Ling complimented to the redhead, followed by a shy smile.

Chiui's eyes widened as she lifted her head up completely. The rosy pigment on her cheeks spread to one-third of her face. "...Oh. Why, thank you, Ling."

Ling only nodded, and his eyes opened when he and Chiui heard someone open the door with a rushing force. They saw it to be his guard, Lan Fan, who looked distressed.

"My Prince! Chiui!" she looked at the both of them. "Are you two alright?! I heard about what happened from Roy."

"We're fine, Lan Fan." Chiui replied. "Ling, on the other hand, won't be for a while."

"...That's what I assumed." The dark-haired woman nodded. She then saw Ling's hand and Chiui's hands, which were still held together. Chiui saw a smirk appear on her lips. She didn't need to say anymore to that.

"I-It's not what you think, Lan Fan!" Chiui blushed massively, and looked away.

"You're just saying that because you're embarrassed, Chiui." she then looked at Ling, and felt her face fluster. She quickly shook it off.

Ling then noticed that him and Chiui were still holding hands, and he grew a bit embarrassed himself. So he released the hold.

"...So are you going to be returning to the military building, Chiui?" Lan Fan questioned Chiui, catching her attention.

Chiui thought that over, since she knew that the person that assigned her on the mission wanted her to return to the building, safe and sound. She didn't know if it was her cousin,Roy, or another person of his rank that assigned her. But since Ling got injured on the trip, her brain was having a debate with itself. She didn't want to leave Ling right now, since she felt guilty for him getting injured like that.

"Chiui?" Lan Fan noticed her silent expression, and the young woman shook her head, getting her head out of the clouds.

"...Well, I'm...thinking of staying here." Chiui sighed, and glanced over at Ling, then back at his bodyguard. "Even though Roy, Edward, and Alphonse know that I'm here, tell Riza and the others that I'm with Ling in the hospital."

The dark-haired woman and dark-haired Prince looked at her in surprise; they thought that she would go back to the building and continue her work. So with a sigh, Lan Fan nodded. "Alright. I'll tell them." she then started making her way to the door, putting her mask on while doing so. She then quickly turned around to look at Chiui. "Keep an eye on Master Ling."

"I will." Chiui waved to her, letting her know it will be okay. Lan Fan waved back, then went outside the room and back to the building.

After Lan Fan had left, the room was silent. Chiui had seen it as more of an awkward silence, since she was rubbing the back of her neck with her hand, her cheeks a bantam pigment. Ling could see it, and laughed a bit, to lighten up the mood.

"You're just like Lan Fan." he smiled, and Chiui gave him a confused look before he continued. "She tends to get flustered when she is around me, and so do you. But...your face seems to become more red than hers."

"Are you sure?" Chiui asked, knowing that Lan Fan's face sometimes turns pink when she sees Ling. She only got a nod from Ling, who seemed to be in thought.

"What are you thinking about, Ling?" she tilted her head to the side.

A short chuckle came from the 15-year old prince. "Well, I was just thinking of when we first met...a decade ago." He was looking at the ceiling, but when he said the last three words, he looked at Chiui. "Do you remember what happened?"

Chiui nodded, and laughed. "Of course!" Her mind then went back to that time.

...

"Mommy, where are we going?" Chiui tugged at her mother's shirt as she, her father, brother, and grandmother, Rai, were walking on the streets of Xing.

Her mother giggled, and smiled at her 5-year old daughter. "We're going to see the young Prince, Chiui." she noticed Yosung, who was just 3 then and liked to be carried, tug at her collar. "I think your brother is excited to see him as well."

"The Pwince of Xing?" Chiui's eyes beamed, since she's never heard of a prince before. She wondered what he would look like, and got a big smile on her face.

"Yep, the Prince of Xing." Their father coudn't help but chuckle. He then straightened his glasses.

Rai was in front of the family to guide them to the Xing Empire. She grew up in Xing in the Youngsen clan about 20 years ago, and became an ally of Lan Fan's clan and the Xing clan.

"Alright, we're here." she announced after a while has passed, and Chiui watched as a tall person opened the gate for them. She almost freaked out, since the man was taller than she and her parents were. But next to him, a little hand was clutching his sleeve.

Chiui focused her attention on the little hand, and saw that it belonged to a kid that appeared to be the same age as her. He had black hair, which was put into a short ponytail. He was wearing a Xingese-styled shirt and pants, which consisted of yellow and white colors. His eyes were closed, but Chiui could tell that they weren't really closed.

"Chiui, Rena, Samuel, Yosung..." Rai spoke up, looking at them. "This is the Emperor of Xing, and his 12th son, Ling Yao. He is the Prince of Xing."

The young redhead gasped, and instantly felt shy. She didn't expect the Prince to be her age, and to be the same height.

"Nice to meet you four." The Emperor bowed, and looked at Ling, who was acting bashful. "Say hello to them, Ling."

"H-Hello." Ling hid his face on his father's sleeve, and his father laughed heartily. He then saw Chiui and Yosung, and got a smile on his face.

The Emperor saw his excitement, and smiled at Chiui's parents and Rai. "It seems that the young Lord would like to play with Chiui and Yosung."

Rena's orange eyes beamed. "Oh, that's wonderful! Chiui, Yosung, would you like to spend some time with Ling?"

She received a "Yay!" from Chiui and a small "Yay." from Yosung. So the Emperor let them inside the building.

Ling, Chiui, and Yosung were supervised by one of the servants of the Xing Empire while the adults talked in another room. Ling and Chiui were playing patty cake, while Yousung just sat there, clapping his hands excitedly.

It seemed that Ling and Chiui were saying the Xingese numbers from one to ten, even though Chiui had no idea what it meant. The three then played hide and seek and tag, but made sure not to break anything when they were playing.

It was now evening, and Chiui's parents and Rai had to get going, so they said their goodbyes to Ling and his father.

Chiui was happy the whole time, and so was Yosung. Chiui was glad that she made a new friend, since she didn't really have any friends due to her Flame Alchemist mark...which she didn't realize she had at the time.

...

Chiui let a warm smile cross her lips as the flashback ended. "It was a peaceful and nice moment, to make it short and sweet. Yosung was so adorable back then." she ended that sentence with a sad laugh, since she knew that her brother, along with her parents, were dead now.

"...I agree." Ling smiled, and then remembered something from back then. "But I remember that I accidentally broke one of my mother's precious vases..."

"Oh gosh!" Chiui didn't realize that. "Did you break it while we were there, or after we left?"

"After you left." Ling got a worried look on his face. "I accidentally hit into it when we were playing tag, and it almost toppled over. I tried my best to hold onto it while you guys were leaving, but it ended up toppling over anyways. I was scolded by Mother."

"Well, an accident is an accident...and also, it's the past now. So there's nothing to worry about." Chiui reassured him.

"Yeah." Ling sighed, and the two transitioned to silence. The Prince suddenly busted out laughing.

Chiui's eyes widened. "Huh? What's so funny? Is it about the vase?"

Ling covered his eyes with a hand as he toned down his laughter, since he didn't want to make his wound worse. "Oh, no. Sorry...I...I was just remembering when Rai took you to visit me again, after your parents and brother had died 6 years ago. That was hilarious!"

Chiui's face turned beet red, for she knew what he was talking about now. "N-No, it was not!"

"Really?" Ling smirked, his laughter gone. "Think back on that for a moment."

"...Alright." Chiui's face went back to normal as she tried to remember that part in her past.

...

"Oh, this is going to be awesome!" Chiui grinned as she and Rai were near the Xing empire. Since meeting Ling 9 years ago, she was curious of what he has become. She was sure that he would be the same, shy person she knew back then.

"I'm sure it would." Rai smiled, knowingly. "And I'm sure that you'll be able to meet his bodyguard as well."

"His bodyguard?" Chiui looked at her. She didn't know that her friend had a bodyguard now.

"Yes...in fact, he has two. One is named Lan Fan, who is the granddaughter of Fu, Ling's second bodyguard. He cares a great deal about them." Rai explained, and didn't have to say anymore. She and her granddaughter were already at the entrance and guided by a person in ninja attire.

"Does your name happen to be Lan Fan?" Chiui asked the person, since Chiui could tell that the figure of the person was feminine. The girl turned around, and nodded.

"And I'm guessing your name is Chiui Youngsen, and you're a childhood friend of the Prince." Lan Fan told her. "Your grandmother, Rai, was in the Youngsen clan a long time ago, so my clan and hers got along well. The Youngsen clan has quickly died out, with Rai being the remaining member."

Chiui gasped, since she didn't know that. She looked at her grandmother, whose cheerful expression suddenly changed to that of sorrow. She didn't want to talk about it, so Chiui left it at that.

"So where is the Prince?" Chiui wondered, looking around. Lan Fan blinked, and she felt her face fluster behind her mask.

"Oh, he's in the training room right now, practicing his Xingsese martial arts skills." she replied. "He's gotten stronger the last time he did his training sessions."

"I see." Chiui smiled, though she was confused of why Ling would be training.

The three then transitioned to silence as they continued down the hallway. They then made a left turn, and went down the hallway to the training room. When they got to the door, Lan Fan moved her mask away from her face, which revealed her bun-tied black hair and black eyes. She then rested a hand on the door, then her ear carefully so she wouldn't end up opening the door.

_Wow...she's pretty. _Chiui thought when she saw Lan Fan's full face. She then saw Lan Fan put the mask back on as she looked at the two girls.

"He's almost done with his training." Lan Fan spoke up. "I can tell by the silence emerging into the room."

Just then, she heard the door creak open. "Who is it, Lan Fan?" they heard a masucline voice speak up, and the 15-year old bodyguard stepped back so he step out of the room.

"Oh." Lan Fan's face turned pink, since the Prince had a towel around his neck, and his entire torso was exposed. He was wearing the white pants that he usually wore with his yellow overshirt. His hair was still in the ponytail. Lan Fan then caught herself, "Rai and Chiui are here, my Prince."

"Chiui?" Ling's confused expression seemed to brighten when he heard that name, and looked in front of him. His eyes met with Chiui's, whose eyes were widened with shock. She felt her face turn beet red, and her heart beat increase, which she thought was very odd.

Here she was, face with face with her first childhood friend. She remembered how adorable he was at age 5 when they met. And now, at age 14, he was taller than she was, muscular, and built. ..._And his cute, squeaky voice is gone! _Chiui thought in disappointment, but liked his deeper voice._  
_

"Chiui?" Ling said her name, trying to get her attention. But it didn't work.

_...Why...why do I have this feeling? _Chiui made a clenched fist and rested it on her chest. _He's...my friend...so why did he have to become so...so..._Her thought was interrupted by a nosebleed, which sprayed outwards as she fainted, landing on the floor.

Everyone was silent for a minute. Rai then bust out giggling. "Is she alright, ?" Ling gave Rai a confused look, since he didn't expect his best friend to react like that.

"Oh, she's alright, Prince." she let out another giggle before letting it die out. "...She...is just happy to see you."

"My grandmother really used that 'happy to see you' as an excuse?!" Chiui's voice cracked when the flashback ended, since her face was now beet red.

Ling chuckled. "It wasn't really an excuse, Chiui. She meant that." he then crossed his arms. "I guess she also meant that because of the hilarious reaction you had!"

"I-I told you, it wasn't..." she became silent, having to admit that she was starting to get a smile on her face. She bust out laughing. "Alright, it was. But first off, I didn't expect you to get taller and be more manly. And second of all, I didn't expect to get a nosebleed! That came startingly!"

"Yeah, right." Ling scoffed, and ended the conversation at that.

The two then heard someone calling Chiui's name from outside. The redhead quickly got up and went to answer the door. It was Riza Hawkeye.

"Oh, Riza!" Chiui's eyes brightened, since she didn't expect Riza to be here. "I thought you had to do some errands for the President. What happened?"

Riza became silent for a moment when she saw Ling in the hospital bed. She then looked back at the young Major. "...Well, I've already finished my errands, but nothing else has happened in negative terms. But the Colonel wants you to come back the building as soon as possible."

Chiui gasped. "But...Lan Fan is trusting me to keep an eye on Ling! And also, I told Lan Fan to tell you guys that I'll be here." she looked at Ling, and then Riza, as she said this.

Riza nodded in comprehension. "I know, but it's an emergency. I will keep an eye on him for you."

_Another emergency? _Chiui thought aside the startling conversation. _Oh great..._ "A-Are you sure, Lieutanant? The President might find you here and you'll get in trouble."

The blonde-haired woman's eyes widened, she never thought of that. Her expression went from intent to worriment. "...You're right, Major Youngsen." she then saluted Chiui, who saluted back automatically.

She then watched as Riza made her way out the door. Chiui gritted her teeth regretfully, and stepped forward, wanting to stop Riza.

"...You should go, Chiui."

Ling's sudden statement threw Chiui off guard, and she sharply turned around to lock her eyes on her friend. She was taken aback. "So...you agree with Riza?"

Ling gave her a reassuring smile. "Yes, I do." he then smirked, signaling that Greed has taken over him. Chiui watched as the red lightning from before slightly healed one of Ling's ribs.

"I'm only able to heal a half of the Prince's ribs." Greed told her. "So you don't have to worry about him. With me possessing his body, he'll be back to normal in no time." he then winked at Chiui, who instantly felt anger boil up inside of her. "So go back to the building and do what you need to do."

"Alright." Chiui sighed, and turned around to walk out the door. She puffed her cheeks in anger as her cheeks turned a pink pigment. _That jerk...trying to hit on me when he's possessing my friend's body..._ she thought to herself. _I don't like that Greed at all._


	5. One Mission After Another

A month has passed since Ling and Chiui's battle with Envy. She's learned off and on from Edward, Alphonse and sometimes Roy that Ling is now in stable condition. His ribs have now healed up completely, but there was some terrible bruises that might take some time to go away.

Chiui has been training some more with her cosuin, Roy, since she had wondered about the explosive attacks she used on Envy, how they suddenly came about. He had told her it was a new technique that came about in a time of fighting, so it came in handy. But the redhead was worried about controlling it, since she knew that her anger issues might get out of hand at times.

When they finished the training session, Chiui was in the Ladies bathroom, rinsing her face and neck off to get rid of the sweat. As she dried the said parts of her body off with a towel, she heard something slip under the door. Curious of what it was, she put the paper towel in the trash and picked up the slip of paper.

It read:

_Chiui, I need you to come to the hospital. There's something that I need to discuss with you in private. It's about the Young Lord._

_\- Sincerely, _

_Lan Fan_

The redhead's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, since she didn't know why Lan Fan would secretly send a message to like this. _But an emergency is an emergency, so I'll need to do what Lan Fan told me to do._ she put the letter in her pocket, and then left the bathroom.

While she was leaving the building, she informed Roy of where she was going. With a nod, he waved goodbye to her.

"Hey, Lan Fan!" Chiui opened the door to Ling's hospital room. "I read the let-"

Ling and Lan Fan both shushed the 15-year old. She blinked in surprise, wondering why they did that.

"...You'll need to lower your voice." Lan Fan reminded her. "They might be eavesdropping."

" What do you mean, 'they'? As in the military?" Chiui guessed, and she was correct.

"...Bradley-I mean Wrath, might be listening in on this conversation without our consent." Ling reminded her, and Chiui had expected Greed to be in control. "But...there might be a chance of me being able to become Emperor."

Chiui's face brightened. "You're serious? Well, that's good to hear!" she then become confused. "But...but why would Lan Fan send a slip of paper to me for this?"

"It is because the military might be planning to doing something to Ling, so he doesn't become Emperor three years from now." Lan Fan explained. "The Homunculus know that Greed has betrayed them, and is on our side now. So they'll do anything to sabotage the Prince."

"Oh gosh..." Chiui's voice trailed off due to her surprise. She looked at the door, and gulped, hoping that no one was standing beside the door, eavesdropping on the conversation. Chiui knew that she was part of the military, but understood that Lan Fan and Ling meant the higher class of the military building...The Fuhrer President King Bradley might be listening in ,as they had just mentioned _...But there might be allies of his listening in on this talk as well..._Chiui concluded.

_They might think that another "Dog of the Military" might be needed. Because that is what they call Edward. _she sighed at the thought, since she didn't like that nickname one bit...and knew it wasn't good.

"Anyways, how are Ling's bruises so far, Lan Fan?" Chiui changed the subject, since the thought of King Bradley was making her disgusted.

Lan Fan blinked, since she didn't expect Chiui to change the subject so soon. "Oh. The bruises have been seeming to go away, and there is only one left. It has almost gone away, thanks to..." she hesitated for a moment, "Greed. Greed is doing a big help in healing the Prince."

"...I see." Chiui could tell why Lan Fan hesitated, since she didn't really like Greed either. But they had to tolerate the rebelled Homunculus for right now...and hated it.

"He'll be able to return to his normal activities later today." Lan Fan grinned out of relief. "So there won't be any use of him being bedridden anymore."

Chiui smiled in the same manner. "Oh, thank God. That's great news!"

Her dark-haired bodyguard friend let out a small laugh. "It is, it is...besides the President." She gritted her teeth at the word "President", which made her voice come out in a mutter.

Meanwhile, outside, the said person...or in other terms, Homunculus was outside Ling's hopsital room, frowning in disappointment. He fixed the two small strands of his combed-back black hair, and adjusted his eye patch.

"...That bodyguard of the Prince didn't do so well in sending that secret to Youngsen." he sighed, and made his way down the hallway, his hands folded behind his back. "...That redheaded cousin and her Xingese friends were led right into Father's plan."

"...And..." he continued, "she might be worthy of becoming a new 'Dog of the Military'..."

...

It was now 2:00 in the afternoon, 3 hours after Chiui had come to see Lan Fan and Ling. The trio was now at the military building once more, sitting on a bench that was close to Colonel Roy's office.

Chiui had her arms and legs crossed. Ling was bent forward, a hand on one knee and the other hand on his chin. He was wearing the same attire from before the accident, which was a black sleeveless Nehru jacket worn closed under a long, black trench coat with black slacks and black shoes. Lan Fan was wearing the mask over her face, which she wasn't wearing when Chiui came by the hospital.

"Is there something wrong, Chiui?" Ling asked, seeing Chiui's posture. It seemed that something was on her mind.

Chiui blinked, interrupting her train of thoughts. She locked her eyes on Ling's. "...Oh. Well, I was thinking of the conversation earlier that we three had together." she exhaled, and tried to find a more relaxing way to sit on the bench, which was uncrossing her legs. "...I had a thought about the term 'Dog of the Miltary', which is the title Edward has besides the Fullmetal Alchemist. I...I'm just worried that I might become one as well."

Ling and Lan Fan both gasped. "You're not going to become a 'Dog of the Military'." Lan Fan reassured her. "...We won't let you. Besides, you've only been in the miltary for about two months, and are already at the Major rank. We won't let Bradley take advantage of you and do his duties."

Chiui was quiet for a moment before nodding. "..Thank you, Lan Fan." She then looked away from the two. _...But...why is that haunting feeling bothering me all of a sudden? _Chiui rested a clenched fist on her chest. _...It hasn't occured to me before since I've been here, serving the military. Is it because I'm afraid of seeing the Homunculus President face-to-face...afraid that I will get slaughtered by him?_

__Chiui shook her head from side to side in annoyance, since her animosity towards the President was only growing stronger by the minute. She then rested her hands on both sides of her head for a few minutes to tone down the emerging headache. But it quickly went away when she and the others heard someone open the door from inside Roy's office.

Chiui, Ling, and Lan Fan both stood up at once when they saw it was Edward.

"Ed!" Chiui exclaimed, not expecting the teenager to be the one coming out. 'What is it?"

The golden-haired teen exhaled in vexation, and scratched his head. "Well, the Colonel is busy talking to his...girlfriend right now, so he wanted me to inform you that he wants you and Ling to go on a mission with Second Lieutenant Hawkeye."

Ling's eyes opened in shock, and Chiui's eyes widened. "B-But why?" Chiui questioned, confused. "Ling just came out of the hospital. We can't go on another mission, since Ling might be injured again-"

"Don't worry about that." Ling told her, which made the 15-year old redhead freeze. "Greed can help us, remember? He has the ablilty to block attacks with some type of steel substance on his body. It prevents any bruises or wounds to occur."

Chiui was speechless for a second, to let what Ling told her click into her brain. She then sighed. "Alright. It's just that...it seems like just one mission after another." _And to be frank, it's getting quite annoying. _she added, aside from the conversation. _I don't see how the others can deal with these constant tasks._

__"Hawkeye is in her room in one of the hotels right now, getting ready. She'll be out any minute." Edward continued explaining. "So I'll give you two the address to wait for her outside her room, so she can meet you there."

They watched as he pulled out a sheet of paper and wrote the Lieutenant's room number. He then gave it to Chiui and Ling.

Chiui looked it over, and put it in one of her pockets. "Thank you, Ed. We'll...get going then."

Then, without another word, the redhead and Ling made their way to Riza's place. Lan Fan waved goodbye to them as they left, and had faith in both Chiui and Ling.

Chiui and Ling were both quiet as they waited for Riza to come out. She had told them through the door that she was almost done, and had to quiet down Black Hayate when he heard Chiui and Ling from the hallway.

Chiui was getting a bit tired, and started to yawn. It was only 2:30 in the afternoon, 30 minutes after they had left the building.

"Long day, eh?" Ling looked at her when he asked the question. Chiui nodded, and rubbed her eyes.

"Yeah, you could say that." Chiui replied, and grumbled. "...The day only has 22 more hours to go, and I am exhausted. Paper work and such...boring." she yawned once more.

She and Ling then heard the door open, and saw Riza step out. Her hair was in it's usual high ponytail, but she was in one of her miltary outfits. It consisted of a short, sleeved black shirt, with baggy brown pants. She had one of her guns in her hand in case of an emergency during the mission.

"I never thought that the Colonel would assign you on a mission with me." Riza smiled, with her tone being that of surprise. "I think it's quite interesting for a female Flame Alchemist and a Sharpshooter to be fighting side by side." she then notices Ling next to Chiui. "...And a Xingese martial arts expert, of course."

"So what is the Colonel doing now?" Riza wondered, since at times she was worried about him. "I'm guessing he's busy doing paperwork..."

"Talking to his girlfriend." Chiui and Ling both said in unison, not to mention irritation. Chiui had experienced this with her cousin before, seeing the smirk on his lips as he talked to the recent lady he was going out with. She found it really annoying, as did the rest of the other military members working in the same office as him.

"I see." The blonde nodded, though she doubted that Roy was really talking to a girlfriend. He was really talking to her about the mission that she was being assigned to with Chiui and Ling when the two teenagers had arrived at her room. But he was hiding it by saying "Honey" and such, which made Riza embarrassed.

"Anyways, we should get going." Ling spoke up, and let Greed take over...because he knew Greed was itching to possess Ling's body again for this.

"Right." Chiui and Riza nodded, and Chiui removed her bandaid from her forehead. She put it in her shirt pocket that had the letter in it.

"Whoa..." Chiui said in awe as she, Riza, and Greed were walking through the grass. They were in Rosulu, a country in one of Amestris's neighboring countries: Fero. They were a few miles away from their goal, which was to find a secret hideout that a rogue Alchemist might be in...or possibly another Homunculus. They were informed that the hideout was being disguised as a garage next to a Xingese-styled house. They didn't know why the house would be styled that way, but they assumed that the person who built it might've be inspired to make it that way.

Greed let out a appreciative whistle. "Man, gotta say. This house is quite nice." He smirked at the interior.

"Well, this is no time to be gazing at the building." Chiui reminded him, catching his attention. "We need to find that hiding spot as soon as possible."

"Okay, okay." Greed sighed, and rested his hands in his pocket. He then looked over his shoulder at Chiui and smirked. "But you can remind me anytime, beautiful." He then winked.

Chiui blushed, and frowned. "...Are you aware that I am 15 years old, Greed?" Greed was taken by surprise, and raised his hands up in protest.

"Enough, you two." Riza sighed, getting out her gun. She had seen something in the corner of her eye, and knew it wasn't good. As her gun clicked, ready with ammo to fire, she saw the figure again. But it was running too fast for her to pick out all the details.

Chiui noticed Riza focusing on what she had seen, and quickly walked towards her. Greed followed. "What is it, Lieutanant Hawkeye?" Chiui asked her, using Riza's formal name. "What did you see?" she flinched when she heard another gun click. She didn't know Riza had another gun in her pocket.

"I saw something in the distance." Riza gretted her teeth, and got ready to fire. "...And it's coming right toward us-!" she ended her sentence in a sharp gasp when she saw the figure come into view.

It was nothing that she had seen before in her life, and it was definitely not a Homunculus. It...had a crimson color to its skin, but it was lighter. The retinas of the eyes were entirely black, leaving the green pupils to glow in the dark. It was wearing an outfit that was skin tight, with the shirt being short-sleeved. Tears were on the sleeve, and on the pants as well...which were the same color. It also supported black wings as well-dark angel wings.

Chiui gasped when she saw the wings. "...That...that can't be!"

"What is it?" Greed questioned her, confused about her reaction. "What's so surprising?"

"Well, look at those wings, "Chiui nodded over to them, "and their color. This demon...used to be good, a seperate entity from what it is now. But something...something has made it fall to the dark side."

"Oh gosh." Greed seemed to be shocked at what she said, but shrugged it off. "Well, it doesn't seem surprising. It just choose the wrong path, like I did with Father."

"How could you be so-" Chiui stopped herself before remembering what he just said about his Father, how he had chosen the wrong path of being with the other Homunculi. She sighed, and quickly turned around, since she had heard something rustle behind her.

She gasped, seeing that it was the demon. Riza was firing shots at it, but it really didn't seem to affect the demon. It had its focus on Greed and Chiui.

Chiui realized that she didn't bring her bandaid with her, and started to worry. But she knew that right now wasn't the time to fret. It was now the time to attack. She closed her eyes, conjuring a fireball into her hands. Throwing it near, the bullet holes that the demon had on its side, she quickly snapped her fingers, letting the fireball explode the impact.

The demon was completely thrown off by the attack, and hissed in pain. It immediately tilted to the right and fell down into the ground. The demon's side was sizzling, and there was third-degree burns on it. It was very likely that the demon won't survive those burns.

"...Wow." Greed was impressed, and let out a whistle. "Seems that fire powers are strong towards demons." he then got down into a horse stance pose, and moved his legs farther away from each other on both sides. He then stuck out his hands, which instantly turned into a steel-like substance that covered his skin. The fingernails on his hands quickly turned into claws.

"...Mind if I finish him off?" Greed smirked, and didn't let Chiui answer. He just went lunged toward the demon and sliced it across the chest, thus ending its life. Chiui couldn't watch, and covered her eyes.

Once Greed was finished with killing the demon, he licked his lips. He then saw Chiui with her eye still covered.

"What? You haven't seen death before your very eyes before?" he questioned her.

Chiui didn't know what to say, but she heard Ling's voice say in Greed's head, "Leave her alone."

Greed raised his hands in protest. "Sorry, dude. I was just asking."

"Well, it's not nice to ask things like that." Ling grumbled, and then became silent once more.

"What was that?" Riza came walking over to them, since she heard Ling's voice as well. "Was that who I..."

"It's nothing." Chiui and Greed both replied in unison.

Riza gave them both a confused look, and sighed. "Never mind." She then turned around, looking at the house. "Anyways, I assume that the demons are coming from inside that house."

"...Yeah, you might be right on that." Chiui agreed. "When we were close to this house, I felt a strange, yet dark, aura pass by us."

"You did?" Riza questioned, since she didn't feel it at all. "You can sense stuff like that?"

"It seems so." Greed spoke up. "I am able to sense it, too. But that might just be a special ability that a Homunculus has."

"True, but the Prince can-Watch out!" Chiui was about to say that the Prince is about to sense certain auras as well, but another demon came lunging out at the three.

"I'm a step ahead of you." Greed smirked as he turned around, slashing the demon across the chest with his hand. The demon instantly fell to the ground, bleeding out from its wound.

"That was close." Chiui commented. "If you didn't react sooner, you would've been hurt."

The possessing Homunculus laughed at her sentence. "I wouldn't have been hurt, remember? I have my special ability to count on to block any attacks."

Chiui knew he was referring to that steel-like substance she saw before, so she left it at that. She then transitioned her focus to the abandoned house, and started making her way towards it.

Riza saw something in between the house and the small hill that she and the other two were standing on, and gasped. "Major, you should watch where you're-" But it was too late. All they heard from Chiui was a scream and a tumble as she fell down into the hole.

Silence moved into the scene afterwards. The blonde-haired 2nd Lieutenant stood up, and exhaled in frustration. "I told her to watch where she's going...but I guess my warning came too late to her ears." she then looked at the hole. "...She can be stubborn like the Colonel."

Greed shrugged that off. "But her falling into the hole might've given us a clue."

The young woman turned around, locking her brown eyes on the Homunculus. "What do you mean? How does one of our people falling into a hole give us a clue?"

The 200-year old being didn't answer her name at first, and just walked towards the hole. He put his hands in his pockets, and leaned forward a bit. "...Well, the hole might be our entrance into the house."

It seemed that Greed's assumption was correct. Right as the two tumbled into the hole, they saw a figure lying on the ground, on its back. It was using some of its fire powers as a light.

Riza gasped. "Major Chiui!" she quickly ran to her, and helped pick her up. Chiui was having trouble getting up, since she had landed right on her back.

"...Thanks, Lieutenant." Chiui coughed due to the dust in the house.

"No problem." Riza nodded. "But you should've been more careful. You went in there when I was giving you a warning not to-"

"I didn't hear it," the redhead sighed, "and I apologize. I was fixated on the house, since I was thinking of a way for us to get in there. But I didn't know...that there was a huge, steep dent in the hill. Ouch..." she felt a pinch of pain go up her spine, and she rested her hand on her back.

Riza could see that Chiui was aching, so she put Chiui's arm around her shoulders, helping support the female Major. "You should give your back some rest, so I'll help you walk."

Chiui smiled. "...Thanks." she didn't know what else to say.

Chiui then caught the sound of hissing in the distance...but it sounded very faint. _Don't tell me that is another demon..._she thought, since she was getting tired of the demons already. _  
_

Greed and Riza heard them as well, but when they did, the hissing was louder. Footsteps soon followed the sound. And, soon enough, a group of demons came running towards the three, ready to kill.

"Oh, great!" Chiui gritted her teeth, and removed her arm from around Riza's shoulders. Riza looked at her in surprise.

"Major, you hurt your back. You can't fight-" Riza went to say, but saw the fire in Chiui's eyes.

"Who said that hurting your back would suspend me from the fight?" she growled. "It won't. My back wasn't hurt all that bad, though I do feel a pinch of pain now and then. "

She then turned around, facing the demons. She activated her powers, making two big fireballs in her hands. The fireballs revealed more light in the room, so it was now more easier to see.

"Now..." she got into her fighting stance, "let's get ready to finish these annoying creatures off!"


	6. Easier Said Than Done

The encounter with the group of demons had soon turned into a huge fight. Each time Greed sliced one, Chiui burnt one up with her powers, and Riza shot one down, more kept on coming.

The three were already getting exhausted, and Riza kept on having to replace her bullets in her guns. But Riza realized that she only had one more set left in both of them.

"...This is not good." Riza gritted her teeth.

"What is not good?" Chiui asked her between sending her fireballs and short burst of air coming out from her mouth.

"I'm...almost out of bullets." Riza told her, and got ready to fire at a demon coming her way. "These annoying creatures are wasting them!"

The fight continued to go on, and the three waited for any more coming their way...but there was only silence. That set relief in the trio's hearts.

Riza had run out of bullets, and put her guns in her belt pocket. She didn't like being without guns now, having wasted them on the demons. It made her feel weak. Chiui could tell, and knew how she felt.

She rested a hand on the 2nd Lieutenant's shoulder, causing the blonde haired woman to look at the redhead. Chiui gave her a reassuring smile, to let her know that Greed and her will make sure to protect Riza. The woman only smiled back, for she didn't have to say anything to that.

The trio then made their way further down the hallway. "Chiui, can you activate your fire powers again for us?" Greed asked Chiui with a smirk. Chiui activated her flame alchemy in her hand so the hallway was brighter, but she could feel a nerve in her head throbbing in annoyance due to Greed's smile.

_I wished that Ling wouldn't have let Greed take over him for this mission..._Chiui exhaled. _Greed can be a real pain when he is in control of Ling's body. _

She then looked around, expecting any demons to come at them any minute. "...There doesn't seem to be any more demons coming out." she frowned, and moved her lips to the side. "How come?"

"We might've gotten rid of all of them." Riza spoke up, though she wasn't for sure. "But there might be some hidden in the shadows."

"True." Chiui nodded, and felt a pinch of pain in her back. She stumbled, almost causing herself to lose her balance and take Riza with her. She muttered a word around her breath of which the blonde woman and the Homunculus didn't hear.

"...Man...that hurt more than the last one..." Chiui gritted her teeth, letting a short burst of air escape her mouth. The pinch of pain that she felt had taken a small amount of energy out of her, which might be because of the injures she suffered from the demons, which were a few wounds and bruises. Greed only suffered a few bruises. Riza suffered one or two bruises, and a few cuts on her arms and face, with one of them having already bled out close to one of her eyes, and starting to dry.

"That might be from the battle with the demons." Greed told her. "You should really take it easy until we encounter any more demons."

"Like you're the one to talk!" Chiui snapped, and Greed stepped back a little. Chiui sighed, realizing that her anger got the best of her. "...Sorry."

Greed shrugged. "It's alright. I've been yelled at by women and men a lot, so I'm used to it." He then walked over to Chiui, and put her arm around his shoulder, like Riza did when the three first entered the building. Chiui felt her face flush, and she quickly turned away. She didn't trust Greed helping her out, but when she saw Riza give her a reassuring smile, to let the Homunculus aid her, Chiui decided to put just a little trust in him.

Once they got down to the end of the hallway, and made a right, Greed's foot stepped on a loose piece of wood. The sound echoed across the house.

"Oh great...:" Greed exhaled in frustration, for he knew a demon might appear at any moment due to him accidentally attracting attention to the trio.

He gasped when he heard footsteps behind him, and didn't turn around in time. He got slashed right across the chest before he could summon his special ability. He fell backwards due to the attack, and Chiui to lose her hold around Greed's shoulders. The collision caused Greed to retreat and for Ling to take control of his body again.

Chiui wasn't really hurt, but the surprise attack to Greed when he was in control hurt the Prince badly. Ling looked at the cut on his chest, and saw that it was pretty deep. "W...What? How?" He then saw the demon who had done the attack, and quickly drew out his sword. He threw it directly at the demon, in which the sword stabbed it right through the heart. The demon fell to the ground instantly, and Ling retrieved his sword.

Ling felt pain rush through his body, and he fell to his knees, resting one of his arms on his chest. Chiui and Riza quickly ran over to him, and Chiui got on her knees, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"...Ling, what in the world happened?" she asked him. "First, we were walking down the hallway, safe from the demons. Next, one of them comes out of nowhere and distracts Greed!"

"...I...don't know." Short bursts of air came out of Ling's mouth. "...I guess...Greed's reaction time wasn't as good when the demon came at him. Greed usually has a very good reaction time, but that demon...had snuck up on him without his consent."

"Yeah...I wonder why." Chiui's eyebrows furrowed with skepticism. She locked her eyes on the demon's body in front of them, hoping to find some clues. She gasped when she saw that there was a Homunculus mark on the demon's shoulder, but it was caked with blood.

"What? What is it?" Ling asked her, and Chiui pointed to the crimson mark on its shoulder. His eyes widened. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know..." Chiui admitted, "but I really doubt that the demon was really a Homunculus. It didn't regenerate when we attacked it, which was obvious. But the mark...that is the mark of a Homunclus, but it's bleeding out. I suppose that the demon was a captive of the Homunculi and Father, and they tortured it in order for it to do their deeeds." she exhaled, pausing for a moment. "...But at least the demon is in a better place now..and no longer hurt by the Homuculi..."

"True..." Ling exhaled as well, with the same melancholic tone Chiui had. He knew that demons were bad news, but finding out this one was tortured by the Homunculi, and the rest might've been as well, it struck sorrow into his heart.

Chiui then looked around, hoping that there weren't any more monster coming their way. She then called Riza over to help Ling up. It took them a few minutes, since the chest wound that Ling received while Greed was in control was giving him trouble. Chiui could hear Ling wince in pain whenever it surged through his body.

"...We need to get you somewhere safe." Riza told him. She then scanned the perimeter around her. "There has to be a room that is untouched by the demons, or was untouched by the owner of this house. But I doubt that."

Chiui hated that she had to agree with that, but then saw light coming from a door down the hallway. "There!"

"Where, Major?" Riza looked at her, and then in the direction Chiui nodded her head towards. She got a relieved smile on her face. "Okay, let's go."

The three then made their way down the hallway, then to the door. Chiui helped carry Ling inside the room once they opened the door, then carefully rested him on the floor. Chiui felt the same pinch of pain before in her back, but it was more painful that the other two were.

"...Ouch." The redhead gritted her teeth. "I should...get some rest and let this back heal."

"That's what I was telling you the last two times that had happened." Riza told her with a stern tone, but Chiui knew that the 2nd Liuetenant was worried about her. "I told you that you should rest, since that fall that you took was pretty hard. But you told me that you would be fine." she then sighed. "...You're as stubborn as the Colonel is, Major."

"I guess so." Chiui couldn't help but giggle at that. Riza giggled as well, then looked away.

Chiui could tell that something was on her mind. "What's on your mind, Liuetenant?" she questioned her, causing the blonde woman to look at her.

"...Oh. I was just thinking of the Colonel." Riza admitted, and Chiui could see Riza's cheeks turn a slight rosy pigment.

"Oh, you were?" Chiui smiled. "Well, that's sweet of you. Do you like him?"

Riza's eyes widened. "...Um..." she didn't want to lie to the Major, since lying was not one of her principles...so she decided to come out with it. "Yes, I do, Major. I've...always loved him. And I think that the Colonel does as well."

"Well, you should tell him!" Chiui got a grin on her face, and patted Riza on the back, almost startling the Lieutenant. "You don't have to keep on hiding it."

Riza blinked, and laughed. "...You're right, Major Youngsen." She then saw a phone in the room, and walked over to it. She checked to see if the phone was still in use, and to her surprise, it was. So she called Roy from the house, and told him what has happened.

"Yes, Chiui, Ling, and I are here." Chiui heard her tell Roy. "I suffered minor injuries, but Chiui and Ling are in need of help. Oh, you're going to send Major Armstrong and Edward here? Alright, thank you." she then hung up.

Chiui had a bad feeling about Armstrong coming, and Riza could see it. "Don't worry, Major. He's a nice man."

"I know that." Chiui told her. "...But he creeps me out, especially with that small sparkle next to his eye whenever somebody in the military sees him."

Riza knew what she was talking about. "...Yes, that's true." She then went to leave the room, and looked over her shoulder at the two teenagers. "I will be outside the door, and tell you guys when Major Armstrong and Edward are here."

"Thanks." Chiui and Ling both said at the same time, with a smile. Riza then smiled back to them, and closed the door behind her. Chiui then rested herself on the ground in front of Ling, so if he stood up, their backs would be facing each other. Chiui sighed when silence entered the room.

"...It has been a tough day today, hasn't it?" Ling spoke up, catching Chiui's attention. Chiui looked at him.

Chiui thought about it, then laughed. "Yeah, it has been. I thought there wasn't going to be an end to those demons." she sighed. "I'm glad that there aren't anymore." she then thought of the demon they fought before finding a safe room to go to.

"Hey, Ling," she spoke up, "do you suppose that the demon with the Homunculus mark on its shoulder was the leader of the demons?"

The 15-year old Prince thought that over. "...It might've been, since we had killed it. No other demons had emerged."

"True." Chiui nodded, then exhaled. She could feel her back throbbing in pain, and winced. Silence entered the room once more, but it was more of awkard silence.

"Chiui." Ling suddenly spoke up, and Chiui's eyes widened. "There's something that I need to tell you."

The redhead instantly sat up, and turned around to look at him, though her back protested in pain. "What is it?"

Ling was already sitting up, but he had his arm over his wound in pain. Sharp bursts of air came out of his mouth, and he mumbled something under his breath before replying. "Look at me."

Chiui was confused. "Ling, are you tired? I am looking at you-" she gasped when he rested a hand on her cheek, causing her to blush massively.

Short bursts of air came out of his mouth before he leaned in. He then said softly, "I love you.", then planted his lips on Chiui's. Chiui's face turned pink all over, especially her ears. Her orange eyes widened, and her heart beat increased.

Chiui was completely confused, but was surprised at the same time. She was wondering why Ling was doing this, since it was completely unexpected. But she soon closed her eyes.

The kiss was longer than expected though, but Chiui was still shocked when Ling pulled back.

"I...I love you too, Ling, but what in the world was that for?" Chiui questioned him, her heart beat at its normal rate now.

An awkward silence stretched between the two. Ling was embarrassed to speak up at first.

"...Well, I've been wanting to say this for a long time, but..." Ling hesistated. "But I...I have always liked you the day we met when we were kids. But...when we ran into each other again last year...I started to feel different, since you had turned into such a beautiful woman." he then smiled shyly. "...And...you're still a beautiful woman."

Chiui's eyes widened, and her eyes became glassy. She wasn't crying, but she was moved by his words. A warm smile then came across her lips as a rosy pigment came across her cheeks. "...Well, I'd have to say the same to you as well. You were adorable when you were a kid, and I loved your squeaky voice. But...when I saw you last year, how much you've changed...you've changed into quite a handsome..." Now it was her time to hesistate, and her voice almost cracked. "A handsome man."

Ling smirked. "Well, I appreciate the compliment." He then rested a hand on top of Chiui's, then nodded. Chiui smiled, and nodded as well. The two then decided to stop the confession there, and layed back down to get some rest.


	7. Return to Central

When Chiui woke up the next morning, she saw that she was in another room, one that was not in the house that she, Ling, and Riza were in yesterday. The room seemed to be much brighter, and sunlight was coming from it.

Chiui yawned, and stratched her head. She then turned around, and saw that Ling had woken up as well. He had a bandaid around the wound on his chest, but there wasn't any on his bruises. Chiui guessed that the bruises were not that bad. Otherwise, they would have bandaids on them as well.

"Well, good morning, Mrs. Chiui and Prince Ling." A masculine voice startled the two teenagers as the owner of the voice walked into the room.

Chiui and Ling looked up, and saw that it was Major Armstrong, with the usual spark next to his eyes. Chiui nervously smiled, and nodded. "Morning, Major Armstrong." she then saluted him, in which he saluted back.

She then looked around. "...So where are we?"

"Oh." Armstrong thought on that for a second. "You two are at in the military building, in one of the abandoned rooms."

Chiui blinked. "Oh, so we're back in Central." she sighed in relief. "Whose room did this use to be?"

Armstrong hesisted for a moment. "Maria Ross's." he replied. "She...was a good friend of mine, but something happened to her. So they cleaned out her office and left it completely empty."

Chiui's eyes widened in shock. "Oh gosh...well, I'm terribly sorry to hear that, Major."

"Thank you." The male Major bowed, and then spotted something between the two teenagers. He saw that Ling still had his hand on Chiui's.

"What is it, Major?" Chiui asked, and Armstrong pointed to where he was looking at. Ling and Chiui saw it, and both blushed out of embarrassment. The two released their hold.

"I-I-It is not what it looks like!" Chiui and Ling told him, but Armstrong just laughed it off.

"Edward and the rest are going to be surprised." Armstrong grinned, and made his way out the door. He then looked at Ling and Chiui. "Speaking of which, he, Alphonse, and Lan Fan will be here any minute. So you two will have some company."

"...Okay." The two said in unison, then watched as the door closed behind the Major. They then looked at each other, their cheeks a bantam pigment.

"...Why were you still holding my hand?" Chiui's voice almost squeaked when she asked him.

"I-I don't know!" Ling shrugged. "I thought I let go if it when we got some rest!"

'I did too!" Chiui's voice rose. "So how?!"

"I must have not been paying attention!" Ling ended the awkward conversation at that, and looked away.

After a few minutes passed, they heard the door open. Edward, Alphonse, and Lan Fan walked in. Lan Fan instantly ran towards Ling and Lan Fan, hugging them both.

"Are you and the Prince alright?" Lan Fan asked them.

"We're alright." Chiui nodded, adding a smile to the end of her sentence. "Did Armstrong tell you about what happened?"

Lan Fan shook her head. "Edward and Alphonse told me. Armstrong had you too over his shoulders the whole time as he, Edward, and Alphonse took you back here." she then smirked knowingly. "And Ed had noted that you two were holding hands."

Chiui and Ling looked at each other, confused. They thought that they were holding hands when they were resting, not while Armstrong was carrying them. They then looked back at Lan Fan, embarrassed. "N-No, we weren't."

Lan Fan just chuckled, setting that aside. "But...I'm glad you two made it out alright, though you suffered a few injuries."

"Thanks." Chiui smiled warmly. She then saw Alphonse and Elric talking to Winry on the phone, asking how she was doing. They haven't talked to their childhood friend in a while, since the last time Ed had called Winry, she told him that he was creeping her out by the sudden phone call.

Chiui couldn't help but let a short chuckle escape her lips. She could tell that no matter how many times Ed told his friends that he didn't like Winry, that he truly loved her.

He then hung up the phone after he and Al said their goodbyes. They then walked towards Chiui, Ling, and Lan Fan.

"So how are you two feeling?" Alphonse questioned Chiui and Ling, who looked away from a moment.

"...Well, my back is still hurting from the fall I took." Chiui told him. "I suffered a few bruises and wounds, but those are minor. Other than that, I'm fine."

"I wasn't really hurt all that much since I let Greed take over my body." Ling added, and then frowned." But when a demon with a Homunculus mark on its shoulder attacked us, Greed didn't react in time, and caused me to take control of my body again." He didn't want to unwrap the bandaid around his chest, so he just patted it with his hand. "...The demon slashed me clean across the chest...so I suffered this deep wound on my chest." Ling sighed.

"I see." Ed commented. His eyes then widened as he thought the part with the demon over in his head. "Wait. Did you say 'a demon with a Homunculus mark-or Ouroburos Tattoo- on its shoulder'?"

Ling nodded, and so did Chiui. "It wasn't a Homunculus like the others are, but Chiui and I assume that the demon had been tortured by the Homunculi, and was forced to follow their orders. The same went with the demons that it was in charge of."

"Whoa..." Al couldn't believe it. "The Homunculi...torture demons? But aren't demons evil themselves-"

"Yes, they are." Chiui interrupted him, and got a sullen look on her face. "But something tells me that those demons used to have a good life, as normal people, but the Homunculi came around and captured them...possibly injecting them with some type of substance that completely altered their appearance. In other words, they completely changed the race of the person...causing it to become a demon and grow dark wings."

She thought about the demon that Greed had killed before they went into the house, how she commented that the demon must've had white wings before they changed color. She realized that the comment she made might've not been true, since demons wouldn't have white wings. Perhaps...

"Is something on your mind?" she heard Lan Fan ask, and she looked at the dark-haired girl.

Chiui blinked, and shook her head. "...No, not really." The comment that she was thinking of had quickly faded away from her mind. She was silent for a moment.

"Say, Lan Fan..." her voice trailed off for a second. "Why...why do you put such much trust in me whenever I am with Ling on missions?"

Lan Fan didn't seem surprised by her answer, and gave it some thought. "Well...I know that you've known the Prince for a long time, and you've always had trust in him. I..." she hesistated, since she could feel her face fluster behind her mask. "I have trust in him, too, but Grandfather and I know that he might disappear without our consent, so we always had to track him down. But since you have reunited with him for the second time, I can see the bond between you two, and I have to admit that I envy it."

Chiui's eyes widened. "Well, I should envy the bond between you and Ling. You two have chemistry-not in that type of chemistry-but as in your job as a bodyguard for the Prince. I envy how no matter what trouble comes your way, you try your best to protect the Prince. Same thing goes with Ling, how he had helped you when you cut off your own arm."

Lan Fan looked away when Chiui finished her compliment towards her, and was silent. She then looked back at Chiui, locking her black eyes on Chiui's orange eyes. "...You're...right. But after I had cut off my own arm, treated by Dr. Knox, and found out the news of Greed possessing the young Lord...well...I felt like I let my Prince down. I felt like I should've been there for him and not be in a bed, injured. I was happy to find out about him acquiring the Philosopher's Stone...but the stone..."

"It has a twisted story behind it, yes." Chiui concluded it for her. "...Let's just leave it at that." She then rested a hand on Lan Fan's shoulder, catching the young bodyguard's attention. "You don't need to be so hard on yourself, Lan Fan. Just...be positive, okay?"

Chiui couldn't think of any other words to say to her, but Lan Fan appreciated what she said. She then looked at Ling, who nodded to her. She then left the room, and closed the door behind her.

The room was silent, then, and Chiui didn't notice that Edward and Alphonse were already making their leave.

"Oh, you two are leaving already?" she stood up, but a pinch of pain from her back caused to her to sit back down. "Did something happen?"

Ed and Al looked at each other, then at Chiui. "No." Ed told her. "We just have to do some errands around Central." he then got a irritated look on his face. "An Homunculus I was fighting ended up in me damaging a few buildings, but at least my automail is not broken." he pointed towards the said arm, and then waved to Chiui. Al did the same.

Ling and Chiui both waved to the two, and then watched them leave.

After a moment of silence, Chiui exhaled irritability. "It is getting quite boring being in here and not being able to walk or do anything."

Ling nodded in agreement, and looked at the bandaid around his chest. "...Yeah. If Greed had reacted sooner, then I wouldn't have gotten us like this."

Chiui's orange eyes widened, and she quickly turned around to look at him. "Ling, don't blame yourself. It is not you or Greed's fault. We didn't expect that demon to come at us like that. It had attacked us when we thought that there were no more demons to kill off."

Ling only looked down at the ground, mute. Chiui was getting worried until the Prince looked up at her. "I know. But-"

His sentence was brought to a halt when they heard someone open the door. Their boots clacked against the ground as they closed the door behind them. They saw it to be Colonel Roy Mustang.

"Cousin Roy!" Chiui stretched out her arms towards him, since she knew that she couldn't stand up. Roy came over to her, and give her a hug.

"I heard about what happened." Roy told them, and then looked at Chiui with a stern face. "You should've followed Lieutenant Hawkeye's orders when she told you to not go in that hole, Chiui. Otherwise, you wouldn't be like this with your back in pain."

Chiui felt those words sting her, and looked down at the floor apologetically. "...You're right, Colonel. I should've. But Hawkeye had said that I am as stubborn as you are."

Roy blinked, then rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "...Well, that's true. But Riza was worried about you...and so was Greed...when he was in control of the Prince's body." he then turned around, since that was all he had to talk about. But then something suddenly clicked into his brain, and he turned back around.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Roy looked to the left, and then to the right. "After you and Ling have healed, I will give you two some time off. You've already had missions to go to back and forth...and I can understand how tiring it can be."

Ling and Chiui's eyes brightened. "Oh, thank you, cousin!" Chiui grinned, but then became concerned. "But...what about Bradley? Is he going to find out about you giving us time off?"

"No." Roy immediately replied. He had a plan emerging in his mind, which was to tell the President that he sent Chiui and Ling on an important task somewhere, and they'll be gone for a while. He didn't have to give it any thought...though he had to admit that he was a tad concerned of the President finding out.

Ling could see the burden on his face, and decided to shift the dialgoue to something else. "...So, when are we going to be able to return back to normal activities?"

"You're going to be able to return to normal activities by this evening." Roy replied. "Your injuries don't seem to be that bad, so you'll be able to be back to normal then."

Chiui and Ling sighed in relief. "Thanks, Colonel." Ling smiled.

"No problem." Roy nodded, and made his way out the door.

"...Why do I feel like this is just like the hospital?" Ling questioned Chiui after a few seconds of silence passed by.

Chiui looked at him and shrugged. "I don't know. Déjà vu, I guess?"

Ling laughed. "Yeah, that might be it." He then set his mind on the evening. "So, where...do you plan to go this evening?"

Chiui thought on that, and couldn't think of a good idea. "I don't know. It's your choice."

Chiui felt so embarrassed as she stood in front of the mirror in her room at Hawkeye's place. She was in a purple dress, and didn't like it at all. She isn't usually one for dresses, since she is more comfortable being in casual wear and military wear.

"You look fine, Chiui." Riza smiled, and Chiui flinched. She didn't expect Riza to be behind her. She turned around.

"You sure, Riza?" she looked at herself in the mirror again, and twirled around. "I don't think I do..."

"Relax." The blonde woman rested a hand on Chiui's bare shoulder. Chiui was wearing a dress with no sleeves. "Besides, your back is covered with a bandaid. You just have to make sure that nothing happens to it."

"Don't worry." Chiui smiled, though she was worried. Riza didn't know what was on her back, and Chiui didn't feel comfortable about telling her. It was something from her past that she didn't want to reveal.

"Do you want your hair up?" Riza asked her, and Chiui thought about that. Chiui always wore her hair in a braid, and rarely had it down. So she shook her head.

"Alright, then." The blonde Lietenant concluded and waved to Chiui as she was leaving the apartment. "Have a good time!"

Chiui only waved, and nodded back. She then closed the door behind her.

It was already 6 in the evening when Chiui was walking down the streets of Central, trying to find Ling.

"He said that he would be near one of the buildings here," The redhead recalled to herself, and then sighed, "so he won't be far." She then looked around. "I just hope that he didn't wander off and get-oof!"

She bumped right into somebody with a suit. She went to apologize and curtsie, but when she saw the black hair in a ponytail, her face flushed.

"Ling?" The dark-haired Prince heard his name being called by Chiui, and quickly turned around. He stepped back half an inch.

"Chiui?" Ling looked surprised at what she was wearing. "Are you...wearing a...dress?"

"I am." Chiui felt embarrassed admitting that. "And you're wearing a...suit? That is very uncommon."

Ling rubbed the back of his head with his hand. "Yeah it is." The two then laughed.

When the laughter died out, Chiui wiped the tears away from her eyes. "But I have to say that you look quite handsome in a suit." she smiled shyly.

Ling appreciated the compliment. "And you look quite beautiful in a dress, my Princess."

Chiui blinked, and she felt her cheeks become rosy. She never heard Ling use nicknames before. But she had to admit that she liked the nickname. "Thanks." she let out a short laugh.

She then saw Ling's hand extended out towards her, and she immediately took it. "So where are we going?" she asked as they walked down the street.

"Oh, it's a surprise." Ling smirked, and his eyes opened. He looked at Chiui, and winked, then went back to looking ahead of them.

Chiui giggled at the wink, since she didn't feel uncomfortable about it. It was only when Greed winks at her that she feels annoyed.

The redhead almost freaked out when they stepped into a large building. She thought it was going to be something entirely different, but when she saw people in fancy outfits, dancing, her heart sunk.

"Hm?" Ling opened an eye and looked at his girlfriend. "Is something wrong, Chiui?"

"Well..." Chiui didn't know what to say at first. "...I thought we were going to a restaurant to eat. But I stood corrected. I...hate to admit it, but I...can't dance."

The 15-year old teenager didn't seem surprised. "Well, I can't dance, either." he grinned, catching Chiui off guard.

"Are you serious?" Chiui couldn't help but let a chuckle escape her lips. "You don't know how to dance, either?"

"Uh-huh." Ling nodded. "My parents have been teaching me Xingese martial arts for as long as I can remember. I've been busy mastering the martial arts of our country, so I haven't been able to actually learn how to dance." he then shrugged. "But I guess that going here would help me learn a few things."

"True." Chiui agreed, and looked at the dancing crowd before them. She gulped nervously, since she wasn't used to being around such a big crowd. She laughed to put it aside, then looked at Ling. "So..are you ready, Ling-"

Her question was cut off when she saw that the 15-year old Prince had disappeared. She looked around, and couldn't see him anywhere. Her ear then caught some hushed and surprised conversations towards Ling, and exhaled deliberately.

"Oh, I should've known..." she muttered to herself, and walked into the crowd. She excused herself when she accidentally bumped into a few of the people, and eventually met up with Ling.

Chiui could see him scarfing down a handful of food.

"Man, fis ish delicshush!" he exclaimed with food in his mouth. "I shvould fell Chiooee abouf fis-" he turned around and saw that Chiui was looking at him, tapping her foot. He quickly finished off the food he had in his hands, and laughed nervously.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I just saw the food and couldn't help myself!" he apologized.

Chiui was quiet for a moment, and then chuckled. "It's alright, Ling. You just have to make sure not to let your verocious appetite get the best of you next time." she then looked at the crowd. "So, are you, um, ready to dance, Ling?"

Ling belched, but covered his mouth just in time. "Of course!"

The two then joined the crowd, and started to dance. Chiui accidentally stepped on Ling's feet a couple of times, and same went with Ling. They keep on apologizing, and started laughing when they did so. But they eventually got the hang of it in no time.

"I guess that you're right about this place." Chiui warmly smiled. "I have learned a bit from dancing."

"Same here." Ling nodded, and then saw something near the tables. He didn't realize it, but as he leaned forward to keep an eye on the buffet table, he had dipped Chiui.

Chiui's face flushed as she almost lost her balance, and looked up. "Ling, did you realize what you-huh?" She then saw him looking at the buffet. _Oh, not again..._she thought, but then saw a silohuette grabbing some food, then dashed out. A waiteress at the table gasped and moved out of the way.

"What was that?" Chiui asked Ling, who looked at her. He felt his face flush, and he straightened himself and Chiui up.

"Oh. Sorry." He blushed out of embarrassment, and then looked at the exit that the silouhette took, which was a window across from the buffet table. "I thought I saw a suspicious figure."

"I see." Chiui looked in the same direction he was paying attention to. "I saw it as well. What do you think it is?"

"To the best of my knowledge, it might have been a Homunculus or a chimera." Ling replied. "It might've been Gluttony, but I'm not sure on that, since he would've tried to devour anybody here, including us."

"So it might've been a chimera, then." Chiui guessed, and saw that Ling didn't say anything against the prediction. "I wonder why the chimera came here in the first place..."

"Yeah, same here." he seemed to be intent, until he and Chiui heard somebody drop something, which took him out of his train of thoughts.

Chiui saw the item fall on the floor, and quickly bent over to pick it up. "Oh, here you go, sir-" her sentence was quickly interrupted by a _**SHRIIIIIP**_. Chiui froze, and felt her face turn red with morticiation. She still had the item, which was a clock, in her hand, and the man who had dropped it was waiting for her to give it back to him.

She saw his impatient expression, and quickly put it in his hand. She then backed away, and stopped. Chiui looked over her shoulder, and saw people's shocked expressions, some nodding over to her back. And what made it worse was that Ling's eyes were wide open; he was staring at her back as well. Chiui immediately realized what happened, and rose her hands up in protest.

"...Er...nothing to see here...just.." she looked ahead of her, "don't pay attention to me as I...skee-doodle out of here. Okay, bye-bye now!" she quickly ran out of the building backwards, and then turned around so she didn't trip. Ling watched as she disappeared from his sight.

Ling nervously laughed. "I'm so sorry...wait, Chiui!" he then followed her.

It took a while for him to catch up with her, since she was a few mintues away from the building. She was out of breath, and had her hands on her knees.

"Chiui, what was that for?" Ling questioned her with a disconcerting tone.

Chiui blinked, and straightened herself. She then turned around and looked at the 15-year old Prince. "...Well, did you see what happened back there in the building? I went to pick up an item for a young man, and when I went to get up, the bandaid on my back ripped off." she then hid her face with her hands. "Oh dear god...I am so embarrassed..."

"Well, there's no need to be embarrassed, Chiui." Ling told her, resting a hand on her shoulder. She gave him a skeptical look, since she knew if that happened to him, he would've been embarrassed as well. She only gave him a nod and a warm smile. She then noticed that he had walked over to where her back was, and was observing it.

"So, what is this on your back?" he asked curiously, poking it with his index finger. Chiui felt pain rush through her body, and she gritted her teeth. The hairs on her back rose up.

"Don't. Do that!" Chiui shivered, and Ling stepped back. Chiui then saw that she scared Ling a bit, and sighed. She was silent for a moment. "...It's...something from my past...a scar that I had received from the fire."

Ling nodded in comprehension, though there was something he didn't understand. "...But why does it look like the Flame Alchemist symbol, but with a lion's head, 'Another Dog of the Military', 'Lone Child', scars, and dried blood?"

Chiui gasped, she didn't even notice that. "W-What do you mean...?" she then saw a mirror next to her, one that seemed to be abandoned by somebody that didn't want it anymore.

Her eyes widened in horror when she saw what he was talking about. She suddenly had flashbacks of what had happened, about what happened at the fire. She remembered running away from the fire, only to be slammed to the ground by a piece of the roof that had a strange marking on it. And it...was exactly like the one on her back.

Chiui sharply gasped, and covered her face with her hands. "Oh no...no no no!"

"What is it, Chiui?!" Ling was worried, and rested his hands on her shoulders. He then saw the distraught look on her face when her orange eyes locked on his.

"This...this scar...I remember it now. I know it was from the fire...but...this mark looked exactly like the one from the roof of my house!" Chiui gritted her teeth, and felt tears emerge in her eyes. The flashback of the mark on the roof appeared again, but this time, it showed something odd...something unbelievable. She saw her...father...drawing the Flame Alchemist mark on the roof, along with the lion, "Another Dog of the Military", and "Lone Child" on it. She then saw what she thought was President Bradley with him and...and...

"Chiui?" she heard Ling's voice, which brought her out of the nightmare she was having. Chiui quickly turned around and looked at him. She went to apologize, that she just remembered something shocking when Ling suddenly hugged her.

Chiui blushed massively, and blinked, confused. She then hugged him back.

"Thanks, Ling." was all she said before the tears finally decided to run down her face. She sobbed, and choked on some of her own tears. Her tears landed on some of Ling's suit, but he didn't mind. He knew that sometimes people had to let out their feelings, especially depressing ones like this.

"No problem." Ling smiled reassuringly, then frowned. "What is it that you remembered, though?"

Chiui knew it was going to come back if she told the Prince about it, so she shook her head. "I don't...want to talk about it."

Ling blinked, and sighed. "It's alright. I understand." He then averted his attention to the dance hall that they were in.

"I don't think that we will ever be able to go back in there again." Chiui sighed out of embarrassment. "After what had happened, the people there might start small rumors...or worse."

"True." Ling nodded in agreement, then got an idea. He then grabbed Chiui's hand, and start running.

The redhead almost lost her balance. "Ling, what are you doing? I said that we can't go back in there."

"I know that!" Ling looked over his shoulder at her. "But I have a better idea!"

"Hey, Riza." Chiui smiled when the blonde woman opened the door. The 29-year old didn't expect the two to be here at this time.

"...Hey, Chiui and Ling." Riza smiled with a perplexing tone to her voice. "What happened to your guys' date?"

Chiui blushed, and looked away. She didn't know that it was a date. But then again, she might've realized that when they were in the dance hall.

She then looked back at the Lieutenant. "Well, um..."

"It was ruined after we were there for a few minutes." Ling completed the sentence for her, adding a nervous laugh to it. "But, we had noticed a chimera or some type of monster at the dance hall."

"You did?" Riza's eyes widened. "Were you two able to see what it looked like?"

The 15-year old teenagers shook their heads. "It was too difficult for us to make it out." Chiui explained. "It just grabbed some food and left. We don't know why it did that, but I have a strange feeling that the Homunculi are behind this."

"True." Riza nodded. "...Though it does seem odd that if the chimera was ordered by the Homunculi to go the dance hall, that it would just grab food and not complete its mission."

"Yeah..." Chiui's voice trailed off when she gave what Riza said some thought. She then rested her hand on her chin. "Or it might be a runaway chimera."

Riza agreed with one more nod. "But, let's leave it at that. Why are you guys here if your date was ruined?"

Chiui and Ling looked at each other, then grinned. They then both looked back at Riza.

"Well, do you have a big, empty room in here that hasn't been furnished yet?" Chiui questioned.

Riza blinked, thrown off by the question. "Um, I think I do." she looked over her shoulder at one of the rooms in her apartment, then back at the two teenagers. "Black Hayate likes to sleep in there, but if you two like to spend some time in there, then...I don't mind."

Chiui smiled, and bowed. "Thank you, Lieutenant." she said the rank of the blonde woman when she lifted her head up.

"Anytime, Major." Riza smiled, and watched as Ling and Chiui went in to the empty room.

There, they continued dancing. Black Hayate tried to join in by jumping around and barking, but saw Riza from the corner, so he decided to stay still.


	8. The Capture

Chiui exhaled out of exasperation; she was pooped from last night. She had fun dancing with Ling yesterday, until Ling had to go back to the military building. That was the only place that he could stay at, because the apartment was out of the question.

The redhead stood up for her bed, in which her bedroom was across from the empty room. She then stretched, and rubbed her eyes. She then saw her military uniform hanging over the chair, so she put it on. She glanced over at the mirror to see how her hair was looking this morning, since she always went to bed with her hair down.

She gasped when she saw how messy it looked. But then again, it always looked like that whenever she woke up. So with a quick comb and braiding, her hair was back to normal. Chiui then checked to see if she did everything right for the morning, but when she did so, she knew she forgot something.

She glanced over at the bandaid on her desk, and took that into consideration. She's been wearing that bandaid ever since she learned about the Flame Alchemist mark on her head, and yesterday at the dance, she wasn't wearing it. She didn't get embarrassed once, though now, she felt weird without having it on.

_Y'know what. _she told herself. _I should just put it on for today, just to make myself not worry so much. _So she put on the bandaid, and wrapped it around her forehad. She then looked at herself once more in her mirror, then walked out of the room.

She saw that Riza was in her military uniform as well, and was saying her goodbyes to Hayate. Riza and Chiui nodded, then saluted to each other.

Chiui then waved to Riza, and left to go to the military building. She was there before Riza, and didn't mind.

When she got there, she saw that one of the military members was despondent. The person looked up, since he noticed her presence. Chiui saw it to be Breda, though she forgot the rank he was in.

"Breda." Chiui saluted him, and he saluted back. "What's happened? What's wrong?"

The brown-haired man looked down at the floor. "...Colonel Roy's gone missing."

The redhead's eyes widened in shock. "What?!" her voice boomed through the workplace, scaring a few people. She then lowered her voice to its normal tone. "B-But how? I just saw him yesterday, and he seemed to be fine. How did he go missing all of a sudden?"

"I don't know." Breda shook his head. "But I have a feeling that either that a palm-tree Homunculus and a round monster have done this."

"Palm-tree...round monster..." Chiui recalled the characteristics that Breda gave the Homunculus. The "round monster" one didn't make any sense to her, but the "palm-tree" one did.

She gasped. "You...You don't mean Envy?" Breda nodded, and Chiui couldn't help but snicker. Her expression then changed to that of earnestness. "Well, if he and the round monster you're talking about took my cousin, then I will get down to the bottom of this. But I'll need help from Edward, Alphonse, Lan Fan, and Ling."

Breda exhaled, and looked at the direction of Roy's office. "Well, the people of the names you just spoke of are in his office, including Hawkeye. So you might want to go in there and tell them you got the news."

"Alright." Chiui nodded, then bowed. "Thank you, Breda." She then gave him another salute, and made her way to Roy's office.

There she saw Edward, Alphonse, Ling, and Lan Fan in his office, worried...though Edward looked more annoyed than worried. He knew what the Colonel can be like, and so did Alphonse.

"Hello." Chiui waved to them, catching their attention. Her face then transitioned into that of concern. "...I...heard about Cousin Roy."

The four just nodded, and Edward got up. He sighed, and rested his hands on both sides of his head. "I figured that." he then let out an annoyed sigh. "Darn, I wish the Colonel wouldn't get himself into trouble like this, especially if it's with Gluttony and Envy."

"Wait." Ling stood up. "Palm tree and Gluttony are part of this?"

"Yes," Chiui nodded, "And that is what bothers me. But I thought you knew about this already, Ling."

Ling became silent for a moment, then shook his head. "...I didn't know about the Homunculi being involved in this, and neither did Lan Fan. We only heard of the Colonel going missing."

Chiui frowned. "...I see." Her eyebrows then furrowed in cogitation, since she was thinking of a possible plan to get Roy back.

_Now where would Envy and the round Homunculus take Roy to? _she pondered. _I heard that the Homunculi's home is underneath the ground in Central, in the sewers. Also, their Father is there as well..._her eyes widened. "Oh no!"

"What is it, Chiui?" Lan Fan questioned the redhead, seeing Chiui's shocked face.

"...Can't believe this."

"Can't believe what?" The dark-haired bodyguard asked her, now with a pressing tone.

"I can't believe that Envy and the round Homunclus...I think his name is Gluttony...would take my cousin to the sewers to see their Father! This is not good! Not good!"

"Chiui, that is not possible-" Edward went to tell her, but then realized that she might be right. He stood up with a jolt. "In that case, we need to get going!"

"Right!" Alphonse nodded, and so did the rest. So, without any more dialogue, the group left to find the sewer. Riza saw them pass by her office, and decided to join in. She had heard of Roy's disappearance, and wanted to help. She couldn't bear to lose the guy she loved to the Homunculi.

"Geez, this is taking forever." Chiui grumbled as she and the rest of the group managed to find the sewers. They had already taken the past few hours searching for it, and with help from the Xingese warriors, they were able to track it down. They now have been walking down the path of the sewers for almost 30 minutes.

"Tell me about it." Edward exhaled, and looked around. "Ling and I didn't have to take this path the last time we were here." He didn't want to say anymore, because he might gross Chiui out if he explained _how _he and Ling got to the underground home of the Homunculi...which was through Gluttony's stomach.

"I see." was all Chiui said before coming to a sudden halt.

The rest of the group stopped as well. "What is it, Chiui?" Alphonse questioned.

"I...sense something." The 15-year old Major spoke up, and scanned the perimeter around her. "And it's close."

All of a sudden, they heard a villainous laugh come from the darkness, then feet pitter-pattering against the ground. Chiui almost flinched when she saw the figure emerge from the shadows, since she didn't expect the figure to be...round and drooling like a hungry wolf.

"Envy, I found them!" The figure laughed once more.

"Good job, Gluttony." Envy smirked, and decided to reveal himself from the shadows as well. When Chiui and the rest saw him, their eyes widened. Ling and Chiui felt their anger boil up inside of them, and Ling stepped forward. He took out his sword, and stuck it outwards.

"Well, you're ready to protect that redheaded friend of yours and the rest of your pals." The Palm Tree chuckled. "That shows confidence."

Ling growled, and then moved his arm so the sword was aimed at the olive-haired Homunclus. "Well, whatever obstacle comes my way, I'll make sure that it doesn't harm me or my friends. Especially creatures like you!" he shouted the last sentence at Envy, who flinched.

"How dare you underestimate us, calling us creatures?" Envy gritted his teeth. "We won't let an inferior species like you put us down!"

"Don't underestimate human beings, Homunculus." Ling reminded him with a smirk.

The Homunclus growled, and charged right at the group. Gluttony followed him.

Ling saw Envy about to send an attack towards him, and swung his sword just in time. It cut clean across Envy's chest, causing him to yell in pain and hit the ground. Unfortunately, the wound healed by itself, and Envy smirked.

"Get him, Gluttony!" he ordered his round brother. Gluttony obliged, and leaped towards Ling.

Lan Fan stepped in the way, and stabbed Gluttony right on the head. Gluttony didn't seem to be wounded badly by the attack, and punched Lan Fan in the stomach, hard. The bodyguard went flying, but saved herself by landing on her automail arm.

"Lan Fan!" Chiui and Ling sharply gasped, and ran over to the Xingese teenager. Ling could see that Lan Fan's arm wasn't damaged when she landed on it, to save it from the impact with the ground. But Ling could tell that based on how hard Gluttony punched Lan Fan, that only one of her ribs was broken.

"Are you going to be alright?" The 15-year old prince asked his bodyguard, of whom he helped up.

"I'll be fine, my Prince." Lan Fan smiled, and then winced. She rested her hand on the shoulder of her automail arm. She didn't realize that her arm was going to give out now. "...I'll have to wait a few minutes before I can use my arm again; it's not yet healed. So you and Chiui should go and fight Gluttony."

Ling understood what she meant, and nodded. He and Chiui then focused their attention on the round Homunclus, and charged at it.

"Yay, seconds!" Gluttony laughed, and went to grab Ling. Chiui stopped him from doing so by throwing a fireball at him, and then snapping her fingers. Gluttony was sent back, but managed to land on his feet.

"My eyes!" Gluttony yelled in agony, and Chiui saw that she threw the fireball right where the said part of his face was. They were sizzling from the fire, but quickly regenerated.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me..." Chiui exhaled with resentment, and quickly gasped when she dodged a sudden kick.

She saw it to be Envy, who saw that he dodged her attack, and went to transform his hand into a scythe. Chiui recognized that he used the same move on Ling to distract him. She gritted her teeth, and went to summon a fireball into her head and punch the Homunculus, but it was too late.

The Palm Tree had decided to switch his arm from to scythe to a snake at the last minute. It wrapped around Chiui's neck, and the redhead's eyes widened in shock. She felt the grip around her neck tighten, and her breath altered. She tried to breathe, but all that came out were sharp gasps and chokes. The fireball she had in her hand quickly went out, and it only made Envy let a sinister smile cross his lips.

"You easily fell for it, Flame Alchemist." The olive green-haired Homunculus chuckled. "How does it feel to be distracted, to have your life choked out of you?"

Chiui gritted her teeth, and then looked to her right for a second. She saw a loose piece of a pipe stuck in the wall, and quickly took it out. She swung it towards Envy's head, causing a sick _WHUMP!_ to be heard when it collided with it.

The Homunculus hissed and immediately let go of his hold around Chiui's neck. His arm reverted back to its normal form, and he held his head in pain. He then went to attack Chiui once more, but felt something go right through one of his sides, and he exhaled piercingly.

He saw that it was from a bullet, fired by Riza. He smirked with a "Tch!" as the wound quickly healed.

Envy then noticed Chiui about to send a crescent-shaped fireball towards him, and jumped in the air to dodge it. He then saw Lan Fan, and decided to attack her. He watched as she dodged his punch attack, which dug into the ground. He gritted his teeth, and turned around, only to be sliced multiple times by the said bodyguard.

Envy yelled in pain, and managed to maintain his balance by resting his hand on the wall. He then heard a crackle coming from the wall, and wondering where that was coming from. In the blink of a eye, a concrete fist punched him, sending him flying right in the other wall. He hit the wall hard with his head, and slid down to the ground.

"That was low, little-I mean Fullmetal." Envy growled, and tried to stand up. But the blow from the attack stopped him from doing so.

Edward could tell that the Palm Tree was about to call him the name he loathed, and muttered, "Don't call me little." He then saw Gluttony about to charge at the group again, but Al took care of it just in time by clapping his hands together, causing a concrete rectangle to come from the floor and cause Gluttony to hit right in the ceiling, slamming hard onto the ground. Chiui, Ling, and the rest of the group took it from there.

"Where is the Colonel?" The golden-haired teenager questioned with a strict tone towards the Homunculus. "Did you take him here to make him another pawn in your Father's plan?!"

Envy only smirked. "You're clever, Fullmetal, but...you're close."

Ed's eyes widened. "What do you mean, ' you're close'? You don't mean that you're planning to kill him?"

Envy laughed. "Of course not! But if does come to that, well..." he shrugged, "then yes, we are."

"You sick monster!" he heard Chiui yell, and before he knew it, he got kicked in the side hard by her foot. He skidded across the floor. "Why would you kill my cousin if you're not making him a part of your Creator's plan?"

Envy blinked, surprised. His lavender eyes widened. He then sneered, "Oh, so you're the Flame Alchemist's cousin. I should've known." He turned around for a second, resting a hand on his head, letting out a loud laugh. "You have a grudge against me like he does."

"Well, he should." Chiui said with a cold tone, then suddenly grabbed Envy around the neck. She slammed him against the wall. "You're a twisted, annoying creature...like the rest of your brothers are, excluding Greed." she knew that Greed had rebelled against the Homunculus, so she didn't want to say anything insulting towards him. "You never have any sympathy for the humans that you kill, and tend to hide secrets when alchemists like us ask you for the truth."

"So tell us where you put Roy." Edward added, walking up towards Chiui, who was tightened her grip around the Homunculus' nape. "If you don't, then you'll be burned or killed by one of us."

Envy's eyes widened when Edward mentioned the word "burned". _That's right...Mustang is the one that killed Lust in the past..._he then exhaled. "Fine! But first, you annoying redhead, let go of me. You're choking me-OW!" Chiui dropped him, and he hit the floor hard on his back.

"Well, you deserved it." Chiui glared at him. "And don't call me an 'annoying redhead'."

She then looked and saw that Gluttony was hit multiple times by Lan Fan and Ling, not to mention Riza and Alphonse. But he still regenerated, no matter what. But seeing that Envy was threatened, he decided to join him and take to the group to where the missing male Flame Alchemist was.

It didn't take them long to enter the place where the Father was, who was sitting in a large chair. His back was connected to the huge wires in the back of the chair. Chiui didn't like hearing the sound coming from it, it was almost like he was in a hospital instead of here.

He didn't seem to pay much attention, though, which surprised Edward and Alphonse. The last time they encountered Father, he had fought them without even lifting a finger, and made Ling the new Avarice...or Greed. _So why is he just sitting there?_ the Fullmetal Alchemist thought. _Did he know we were coming to get Roy?_

"So...you're here again." he suddenly spoke up, and got up from his chair. The group heard the sounds of the wires popping off of his back, and Chiui felt shivers go down her spine. She didn't like the sound at all. The Father then turned around to face them. "...And it seems you brought some friends."

The golden-haired teenager growled, and stepped back an inch, and so did Ling. They remembered their first meeting with Father in the past, how it didn't go well.

The Father didn't pay any attention to Edward and Ling's reaction. Instead, he focused his attention on Chiui, who stepped back a few inches. She reached inside her mind for a moment, since she remembered Ed telling her that the Father was a dead ringer of him and Al's own father, Van Hohenheim...and Hohenheim's explantion of how Father took on Hohenheim's form.

"...And you must be Chiui Youngsen, the Xingese-Amestrian girl I've heard about." he told her with a cold tone, which made Chiui cringe.

"H-How do you know my name?" her eyes widened in horror. "...I've never met you."

The Father become silent for a moment, then looked to his left. He nodded over to somebody, which the group couldn't tell who it was in the dark. When it stepped out, they saw it was just a tall man with a dark jacket-with the hood up-dark pants and shoes. The jacket was sleeveless, and revealed the Ouroburos tattoo on his shoulder. His face was hidden by the bangs of his black hair, so it was hard to make him out.

The group then saw the new Homunculus push somebody in front of him, and they gasped.

It was Colonel Roy Mustang! Chiui thought that he would be beat up and bloody, but it was the exact opposite. His hands were tied behind his back, and he had a troubled look on his face.

"Colonel?" Edward looked confused, and so did the others.

The dark-haired Colonel looked up, and locked his eyes on the golden-haired teenager. "Oh, hello, Fullmetal." His eyes then focused on Chiui's. "Same goes for you, Chiui."

Chiui went to say, "Thank you, cousin." but stopped. She just realized that Roy's tone sounded...off, like he was in thought and annoyed by what was coming up in his mind. Chiui thought about that, and come to the asusmption that he had to tell the Homunclus something against his will...and felt guilty doing so.

"What did you Homunculus do to him?" Chiui suddenly spoke up, startling the Father. "What was so important for you to capture him and bring him here? What questions did you ask him?"

The Homunclus behind Roy stayed quiet, and looked away. The redhead noticed this, and immediately looked at him. "Do you have an answer?"

The Homunculus looked at her, and shook his head. "No." The simple sentence revealed that his tone was deep, unlike the other Homunculi's voices. He then nodded over to Envy and Gluttony, who looked at the Homunculus in surprise.

"What?" Envy stepped back. "Why are you not speaking, Vengeance? Has the cat got your tongue?"

Again, Vengeance shook his head. "...No. I don't know what the plan was, so that's why I nodded over to you."

"Well, I don't have an answer to give to them!" snapped Envy, "And never does Gluttony, Father..." he paused for a moment, and looked at Ling. "...Or Greed, who is not in possession of the Xingese brat's body right now."

Vengeance didn't flinch at Envy's reply. He just exhaled, and looked at the Colonel before him. "Well, I should've known not to ask you, brother. I should've asked the Colonel if he should tell them."

Envy's eyes widened in surprise, and so did Chiui's and Ed's. The Father and the rest of the group didn't seem shocked.

"You idiot! Why would you want _him_ to reveal our plan?! That means that we will have to let him go!"

Vengeance gritted his teeth, since Envy's reply made him a tad irritated. "...Well, that seems to be the only choice...because it doesn't seem a good idea for you to explain it, and for Father to get involved. It will only make things more complicated for our 'Sacrifices'."

The Palm Tree winced, and exhaled. "...Alright." His tone showed that he didn't like the dark-haired Homunculus' choice, even though he had a point. "Release the Flame Alchemist."

Within a second, the rope around Roy's wrists was cut off with Vengeance's talons. Chiui found it weird that his arms were made of a light-colored metal, with a feather-like texture to them. It was similar to Greed...how he had a darker type of substance to defend himself and attack.

Vengeance brought Roy to the group, and then looked up. Ling gasped when he saw the Vengeance's eyes, that both eyes were wine-colored, like the other Homunculi's eyes. But it seemed to shift to blue quickly, then go back to the wine-color.

Ling had a feeling that he knew who Vengeance really was, but it didn't click.

"What is it, my Prince?" Lan Fan questioned him, seeing Ling's worried expression. Ling didn't say anything, which made his bodyguard worried.

All of a sudden, Ling could tell that Greed was starting to take over. Ling tried to fight it, since he was about to remember who Vengance really was...but came to an assumption that Greed somehow knew. So when a laugh was released from his throat, Lan Fan realized that the rebelled Homunculus was in control of Ling's body now.

Lan Fan gritted her teeth. _I can understand why Chiui doesn't like Greed one bit...and it's because he can take control of the Prince's body. _she thought aside.

"Well...that was unexpected." Greed smirked, and let out a short laugh. "Now, what is it the Prince wanted me to do? Oh, right." Greed looked at Vengeance. He scanned Vengeance's appearance with his eyes, to see if the Homunculus rang a bell...but it didn't seem to.

"Sorry." The dark-haired rebelled Homunculus spoke up after he had finished looking at the younger Homunculus. "It doesn't ring a bell."

Lan Fan and the others looked surprised. When Chiui saw Vengeance's eyes, she felt like she knew who that was...but it didn't hit her.

"...You guys need to get going." Vengeance reminded them with a cold tone. "Seeing if I look familiar to you doesn't matter right now."

Greed raised his hands in protest. "Alright, alright."

The group then made their way out of the place. Vengeance followed them to make sure that the chimera in the net above the sewers wouldn't come out at them. Once the group got to the entrance and started going through it, Chiui looked over her shoulder at Vengeance.

Vengeance locked his wine-colored eyes with Chiui's orange eyes, and looked away. He seem troubled by seeing her, and didn't want to say anything. So Chiui left it be, and followed the group out of the sewers.

Once they got back to Central, Roy was greeted by his fellow military members, especially Breda, who was concerned about him. Roy smiled, only to be hugged by Riza...even though she went with Chiui and the others to find him. The blonde Lietenant gave him a kiss on the cheek, and Roy blushed. Ed and the rest couldn't help but laugh, and stopped when they saw Roy give the Fulllmetal Alchemist a death glare.

They then went to Roy's office, where he explained everything to them. Greed didn't give any reaction at the end; he was silent. But the rest of them gasped.

"The Homunculi are planning to make you a 'Human Sacrifice'?!" Edward and Alphonse exclaimed at the same time.

"Why?" Chiui added her pressing question. "Why would they plan to do that, when the Homunculi have already planned for Ed and Al to be their 'Human Sacrifices'?!"

Roy got the same look on his face that he had back in the sewers. "...It is because they know that I have a high rank in the military and I am well known around here. Also, they've seen me with Fullmetal and Alphonse...not to mention Riza, Ling, Lan Fan, Chiui..and the list goes on. It is also because I carry the State Alchemist watch with me in my pocket, proving that I'm a 'Dog of the Military'." he paused for a moment. "...They...see potential in me and hope to include them in their plan of using Edward, Alphonse, and I to recreate the destruction the Homunculi caused in Xerxes."

Everyone got quiet, and didn't expect that to be the plan. Edward then gritted his teeth and pounded the side of his head with his metallic hand, thus breaking the silence.

"Damn it!" he muttered, then rose his voice to its normal level, but with an angered tone to it. "I should've known! We should've known that from the beginning!"

He then growled, and unfolded his metallic hand, so the palm rested gently on the side of his head.

Greed could see the anger in the young Alchemist's face. "...You're right, pipsqueak. But the other Homunculi wanted to hide it from you 'Human Sacrifices'. But because of Chiui here forcing them to answer, they had no choice but to release Roy and have him tell us himself."

Ed felt his rage increase when Greed called him "pipsqueak", and was ready to give Greed a beating. But he thought over what Greed just said, and put his anger aside. "...You're right. But Chiui didn't really force them to answer...she just wanted to get the truth so they could let Roy go."

"Yeah..." Greed sighed, and his mind set on Vengeance. He found it odd through Ling's eyes how the Homunculus acted differently than the others. _He seemed to be annoyed by Envy...but then again, who wouldn't be? _The Homunculus thought aside.

Besides that, he noticed Vengeance's attitude, how he was mostly quiet and seemed to keep to himself. He also didn't seem interested in the Father's plan, and felt sympathy for Roy...like he didn't want the Flame Alchemist to be in the plan at all.

"That's it!" Greed stood up, almost startling the rest of the group. "Vengeance is planning to rebel against his brothers."

"W...What do you mean?" Alphonse questioned. "Just because he didn't agree with the Father's plan means that he is going to go against them."

"That's true." Greed lifted up his index finger. "But even though that might be the case, I could tell what he was thinking through his expression. He was forced to become one of the Homunculi, since Father thought that he would be a good 'pawn' for them...one that they can use in case something of theirs goes wrong, or if they have something in mind..." he then thought on that some more, tapping the tip of his chin with his index finger.

He exhaled when he didn't come up with anything. Chiui could see the disappointed look on his face. She then sighed, resting a hand on one side of her head. Multiple strands of her red hair peeked above and between her fingers. "Well, as much as I don't like you, Greed, you have a point. But why did Ling look surprised when he saw Vengeance?"

Greed shrugged. "Heck if I know." He then became quiet, and let Ling take control.

"...So what do we do now?" Edward spoke up after a few seconds of silence passed by. "Roy is back with us and out of the Homunculi's grasp, but I doubt that they'll stop there."

"You're right on that, Fullmetal." The dark-haired Colonel nodded, and folded his hands, resting them on his chin. "They might come back and capture one of us without anyone else's consent, and we'll need to be ready."

"Right!" Edward agreed, and the others nodded in the same manner. Roy then thanked the group again for helping him, and give his cousin, Chiui, a quick hug.

Chiui then checked to see if she had anything else to do, and seeing that she didn't, left to go to her room in Riza's apartment.


	9. The Real Missions Begin

It has now been 1 year since Chiui has been in the military. She remembered how last July, she had met Alphonse, Edward, and the others that are now close friends of hers...not to mention meeting her cousin, Roy. She liked to help him on errands when he was off, like carrying groceries. Riza, on the other head, was now together with Roy, and Chiui was happy.

Also, she was more happy to be spending more time with Lan Fan and Ling. Chiui got time to chat with Lan Fan, and shared what they've been thinking. Lan Fan said that she was glad that Ling got together with Chiui...since she knew that Ling had always liked Chiui since their first meeting 11 years ago.

Chiui couldn't believe that it has already been eleven years, but hated how it's now been 8 years since her parents and brother's demise. _Another year of happiness follows with another year of grief..._she thought sadly when she realized that.

Besides that, speaking of Ling, Chiui got to go on more dates...with most of them being missions instead of dates. Chiui didn't mind, even though she hated it when Greed took over Ling at certain times.

"Chiui?" she heard a feminine voice call her name, making her come out of her train of thoughts.

She shook her head, and blinked. She then locked her orange eyes on the person's eyes, and saw them to be Riza's.

Chiui smiled nervously, adding in a laugh of the same manner. "Oh, sorry, Lieutenant Hawkeye. I...was thinking of last year. A lot has happened since then."

The blonde-haired woman smiled warmly, and nodded. "That's true, 2nd Lieutenant Youngsen."

Chiui grinned, liking the new rank. She had just gotten promoted to 2nd Lieutenant last week, and was proud to have two stars instead of one when she was a Major. Most of her life, she didn't really feel proud of the accomplishments she got when she was younger. But now at 16, she had that feeling, and was confused of why she put herself down in the past.

She then saw the papers she had on her desk, and saw that she hadn't stacked them up yet. "Whoops." She said to herself, and stacked them up. She then heard her name being called, and turned to see who it was.

It was Fuery, and he looked nervous.

"Sergeant Major Kain Fuery?" Chiui tilted her head to the side, confused of his expression. "Why do you look so concerned?"

"This paper..." he told her, looking down at the said object in his hand, then back at Chiui. "Bradley gave this to me for you."

"Bradley?" Chiui repeated the name to herself, and felt fear rise up inside of her. So without hesitation, she took the paper and read it to herself. She then gasped.

The letter had read:

_Dear Second Lieutenant Youngsen,_

_ Today, I am going to assign you and Roy Mustang on a mission together. This is not like the missions that you've gone before, since those were considered practice missions. _

_This mission will be at the Arios valley, where it has been reported that there are runaway alchemists, not state alchemists, that have recently been found guilty in the murder of a well-known social speaker, Francis Doiley. _

_So, if the runaway alchemists resist arrest, then you and Mustang know what to do...shoot to kill. Or in this case, burn them to a crisp._

_From Fuhrer Bradley_

"What...what type of letter is this?" her hand shook when she read over it one more time. At the beginning of the letter, she was excited to be going on a mission with her cousin, but become confused when Bradley called the missions that she has been on since last year "practice missions". _How could those even be called practice missions? _she thought. _...Those practice missions had gotten harder in the past few months, and Ling, Lan Fan, and I almost came close to meeting death right before our very eyes!_

Chiui slid her teeth together, and clenched the piece of paper in her hand, crumpling it. Putting the thought of the peculiar name of the missions aside, she couldn't believe that Bradley would want her to start following the orders to kill somebody...no matter if they were innocent or guilty.

Never has Chiui in her life killed anybody, but she's heard from her cousin Roy, and his team about what it was like to kill someone in the Ishval war. They ended up regretting what they did, and also it made them have "the eyes of a murderer". And Chiui didn't want that.

_...But, if I refuse, I will be court-martialed...or worse._ Chiui felt a lump appear in her throat as those words passed through in her mind. She then put the piece of paper in her pocket, and exhaled.

"Alright, I'll get going then." She looked at Fuery, and saluted to him. "...Thanks for telling me, Sergeant Major."

"No problem, Second Lieutenant Youngsen." he saluted her back, and watched as she walked past him and made her way to Roy's office.

He could see the concern she had on her face, which she tried to hide by looking self-assured. The confidence didn't work out that well, and Fuery sighed sadly.

"Poor child..." he said to himself as he made his way back to his workplace in the building. "She has to start doing those missions at such a young age..."

"Ario?" The dark-haired Colonel questioned Chiui as they walked to the train. He saw his cousin nod, and then exhaled. "...Well, I'm not surprised."

Chiui's orange eyes widened. "You're not surprised?"

Roy shook his head. "Well, Ario is known for the high crime rate in its city, and it's been going on for a while. But to hear about runaway alchemists only makes it worse." He then saw Chiui's worried expression, and knew she was thinking about Bradley's orders: "Shoot to kill."

"We'll have to follow the Fuhrer's orders, no matter if we want to obey them or not." He reassured her, which didn't make her feel any better. "So...let's go."

The train had already come after the two had finished talking, and they got on.

Chiui admired the view from outside as the train started moving along the train tracks, but realized that she had something on her mind. She looked away from the window for a moment.

It was about Ling Yao and Lan Fan, how Bradley didn't mention them in the letter.

"Is something wrong, cousin?" she heard the Colonel question her, and she looked up at him, locking her orange eyes on his black eyes.

Chiui nodded. "...Well, I was thinking about the letter, how Bradley had teamed me up with you, but didn't mention Ling and Lan Fan's names in there. Does...does Bradley think that they are a risk?"

"I don't think so," Roy replied after giving that question some thought, "but he's noticed how you've been teamed up with them since last year by me or one of the other members of my team. ...So, taking back what I said at the beginning, he might think that the two of them are a risk, and it might interfere with his...plans."

"Plans?" Chiui raised an eyebrow, since she's heard Roy mention that word from time to time when talking about the Fuhrer. Even though she didn't know what Bradley's plans were, she had a feeling that they were not positive.

Roy shooed that word away with his hand. "But I don't like the idea of him keeping Ling and Lan Fan away from the missions you are in. You share a certain bond with them, since you've known the two of them for a long time."

"True." Chiui agreed. "But I do have a feeling that Bradley is doing this because of Greed possessing Ling. Bradley knows that Greed has rebelled the Homunculi for a second time, and doesn't like it."

"...Although Ling seems to be in more control of his body recently." Roy added, and went into thought.

The redhead left him alone for him to think, and looked back out at the window. She realized that she didn't have her usual band aid over her head, but she didn't really care. Besides, she's been embarrassed of the Flame Alchemist symbol on her forehead for a long time...and knew that she couldn't hide it for long. She then focused her attention on Ling and Lan Fan, and wondered how they were doing right now.

_I'm sure that they were confused, not to mention disappointed, in Bradley's choice...if they have found out or not. _she thought. _But...I hope that Ling and Lan Fan are alright, and are not in any harm._

Speaking of which, Ling and Lan Fan's eyes widened when they got the news.

"Bradley did what?!" Ling made sure that his reaction wasn't too loud, because he didn't want the military members walking by Al, Ling, and Lan Fan to hear him.

Alphonse was looking down at the ground, and exhaled sadly. "I'm sorry, Ling, but big brother and I had just found this out from Sergeant Major Kain Fuery. Ed and I had asked him where Chiui was going in such a hurry, since she was walking faster than usual to Roy's office. He explained that she wasn't in a rush, and then went into further detail...that Bradley had decided for Chiui to go on "real missions", not "practice missions". Fuery also commented that Bradley is suspicious of you two and is trying to keep you two away from Chiui as much as possible...possibly because of Greed."

Lan Fan and Ling got troubling looks on their faces, and Lan Fan rested a hand on her forehead. "...I can't believe this is happening." she muttered, then looked at the Prince. "All this time, Bradley didn't seem to mind with the Prince and I aiding Chiui on her missions."

"That's true." Ling agreed with his bodyguard. "But Chiui is my girlfriend, and your friend. If she is put into any danger, or dies on a mission, then you and I will feel the guilt of not being there to save her from Death's grasp."

Lan Fan only nodded, and became silent. The 15-year old Prince of Xing did the same.

"...There has to be some way that Lan Fan and I can aid Chiui on her mission, without Bradley spying on us." Ling spoke up.

"Yes." Alphonse agreed, and then saw Edward walking towards them. He had just come from taking a shower in one of the bathrooms, and had on a white, button-up shirt, black pants, and shoes. He had his red coat over his shoulders.

"Did you tell them?" Edward questioned, and Al nodded. Lan Fan and Ling gave the two brothers baffled looks, not knowing what they were talking about. But when Al reassured them that it was about Chiui going on a "real mission", their confusion quickly faded away.

"Before you came in, I was asking Al if there was a way to help Chiui on her mission with Roy." Ling spoke up to Edward. "I know that her cousin will help keep her safe, but Lan Fan and I will feel humbled if Chiui gets damaged during the mission...even with the Colonel by her side."

"...Well, you're right on there possibly being a way." Edward rested a hand on his chin, and his mind jumped onto his train of thoughts. "But you're also right on Bradley spying on you two." he then remembered the city that Chiui and Roy were assigned to. "...But did you two get the name of the city the two were assigned to?"

Lan Fan and Ling looked at each other, then back at Ed. They shook their heads.

The golden-haired alchemist exhaled, since he assumed that they would've found out about that. "...Well, the city is named Arios, and it is known for it's high crime rate. And it has been recently reported of there being runaway alchemists that murdered a well-known social speaker."

"Oh." Ling blinked, since he's heard of Arios and the crime rate. He then thought over what he was talking about before, which if there was a possible way to help Chiui. He knew that Bradley would send spies or use Gluttony to track their scent, so that dismissed the idea for good. In addition, he's heard that the runaway alchemists are strong, since they have killed anyone that has been assigned to arrest them.

_But Chiui and Roy are known to be powerful alchemists, and are known to have a good strategy. _Ling added in thought. _...So I think Lan Fan and I should have faith in Chiui and know that she and the Colonel will be okay._

He told Lan Fan what he had on his mind, and Lan Fan thought about it. She then smiled, and nodded.

"I guess it's because we've always been on Chiui's side for a long time." Lan Fan spoke up. "We've always helped her on her missions, and she has always helped us whenever we were injured or in danger. And she has grown confident since last year, when she first enlisted into the military."

"Yep." Ling grinned, and ended the conversation with a short laugh.

Back in Arios, the train has come to halt, signaling that the train has come to Chiui and Roy's destination.

The two cousin got off of the train, and walked out of the train station. As they set foot into Arios, Chiui saw that it wasn't what she expected.

She expected it to be a lively town, with a thriving population...but it was the exact opposite. Most of the buildings were torn down or damaged. There was poor people in the streets, begging for food. Mothers walked by Chiui and Roy, crying children in their arms.

Chiui hated seeing this, and so did Roy. It reminded him too much of the Ishvalan war, where he saw the same type of situation occur. He felt penitence rush inside of him, and he put it aside by shaking his head.

"E-Excuse me..."

Chiui and Roy blinked, and saw that there was a little girl standing before them. She was holding a teddy bear in her hand, which had an ear missing, revealing the fuzz inside of it. The little girl has blonde hair, white skin, and red eyes. When Roy saw the red eyes, his eyes widened.

_A...An Ishvalan? _The dark-haired Colonel couldn't believe it. He was going to complete his thought when he saw a woman that he assumed to be the little girl's mother, pick her up. He saw that she had red eyes as well.

"I'm sorry." the mother apologized. "Lilia tends to wander off when she has seen new arrivals." She then hugged her little girl. "...But are you...state alchemists?"

Chiui and Roy looked at each other, then back at the mom. They then nodded. They were confused when they saw the mother suddenly step back in fear, her red eyes widened.

"Aha! So you've come to hurt us, haven't you?!" her voice rose, which didn't help much as it continued to do so. "You are part of the rogue alchemists' team!"

Chiui and Roy could see other people with Ishvalan eyes walking towards them, making a crowd around them.

Chiui raised her hands in protest. "M'am...w-we can explain. We're not part of their team at all. We...have been assigned to arrest them."

"Yeah, right!" they heard an old man yell. "You're just saying that to hide the truth-"

"We're not! Honest!" Chiui reassured him, and started feeling panicked. "Fuhrer Bradley assigned us to arrest the runaway alchemists..."

"And if the alchemist resist, then we were given orders to kill."

The Ishvalans gasped, and Lilia's mother could see that by Chiui and Roy's expression, that they were indeed telling the truth.

"...Alright." The mother exhaled. "We apologize for jumping to conclusions. We've...been like that since Benito, Arzali, and Tigo have escaped into our city and completely destroyed it."

Roy went to say, "I see.", but the names seemed to be familiar to him. "Benito,Arzali, and Tigo? ...They've been reported to be on the loose for the past 5 years."

"Well, that seems to be them...the 'runaway alchemists'." Chiui concluded. "So we have to get moving."

"Right." Roy got his Flame Alchemist gloves out, and slipped them onto his hands. Chiui just clapped her hands together, to reassure confidence in herself that her and Roy can do this.

"So where have the rogue alchemists gone off to?" Chiui turned and asked a young Ishvalan man the question.

"I-I believe that they ran off to Renos, Arios' capital city." he explained, pointing in the direction of where the city was, which was north.

"Alright." Chiui then bowed. "Thank you."

And with that, Chiui and Roy waved goodbye to the Ishvalans, who waved back. They had trust in the two alchemists now, and knew that they could defeat the three rogue alchemists.

It was almost afternoon when Roy and Chiui were almost at Renos. Chiui thought it would take about 4-5 minutes to get there, but it felt more like an hour.

"...I didn't know that some of the Ishvalans took refuge in Arios, considering that it used to be an abandoned city." Roy was talking to himself in awe. "Well, I'm relieved that they have found another place to live in." He realized that his mind was shifting to the Civil War, so that is why he stopped there.

He then focused his attention on his 16-year old cousin. He went to ask, "Do you feel the same, Chiui?" but she seemed to be thinking the same thing. So he put that aside.

They then heard somebody's footsteeps pitter-pattering across the ground in front of them, and the two alchemists froze. They were just one inch away from Renos when they heard the sound.

Chiui heard the sound again, but it seemed to be closer.

"What...what is that coming from—" Chiui questioned, and she caught eye of a masculine figure charging towards her. She dodged it just in time, and struck the figure with one of her fireballs after activating her alchemy.

The man screamed in pain, and fell to the ground on his side. Chiui and Roy then heard two men coming towards the injured man, and Roy's eyes widened.

It was Arzali and Tigo. They were both twin brothers: both had blonde, short-cute hair, blue eyes, white skin, and freckles. They wore business suits, even though Benito, the Hispanic, dark haired,bearded man on the ground, was wearing olive-colored civilian clothes. He didn't seem to be wearing his military uniform like the twins were.

Chiui and Roy instantly got ready to fight.

"So you're the 'rogue alchemists'." Chiui spoke up, surprising the three. They stepped back an inch.

"Yes...we are." Benito, who was being helped up by Arzali, spoke up. His comment revealed that he spoke broken English. "Why, were you two sent to kill us?"

Roy nodded. "Yes." He then tugged at one of his gloves, straightening it out.

Benito can see that he was getting ready to fight. "We should've known. Five years ago, we three had committed the crime of murdering a social speaker. He was part of our past, and was responsible for killing Arzali and Tigo's parents. We thought that was going to help avenge him, but we found out that he was an icon of Edoros, the neighboring city of Arios."

"So...you three ran off so you wouldn't get caught?" Chiui questioned. She wanted to ask another question after that, but she suddenly felt guilt rush inside her. She didn't realize what it was from.

"Seems like you three thought it was a clever idea back then to do so, and for you to kill any soldiers or alchemists that were assigned to kill you." Roy finished it off for her, though his addition wasn't in the form of a question.

Tigo smirked, then chuckled. "Well, those soldiers and alchemists deserved it." He then closed his eyes. Arzali and Benito did the same.

Sharp gasps escaped Chiui and Roy's lips as they saw strange alchemy symbols appear on the trio's arms. Arzali's, as Chiui saw his, represented the ground. Benito's represented sky, and Tigo's represented grass.

"Oh god..." Chiui muttered, and the Colonel didn't have to ask why. "Their alchemy...is based off three of the main elements!"

Roy gritted his teeth, and furrowed his eyebrows in anger.

"Those Ishvalans were right. Based on the elements that the trio has, they are indeed strong." he then snapped his fingers, sending a flare of fire at the trio, who had dodged it. "...This is going to be a long fight."

And it was. Once the battle was over, Chiui and Roy had suffered wounds on their arms and face. Chiui had minor wounds on her arms, with those being cuts. She had suffered a blow to the head, which caused blood to drip down from her forehead, covering her Flame Alchemist mark. The blood stopped at her eyelids, and started to dry off. Roy had minor cuts on his gloves, and head, but it didn't affect his flame alchemy.

The rogue trio, however, were more wounded the Flame Alchemists. They couldn't believe that two flame alchemists were beating them, and are still alive to tell the tale.

Seeing that the trio was on the verge of defeat, Chiui and Roy closed their eyes, then exhaled.

Roy could see that Chiui was worried about having to follow orders to kill, and knew that they would have to do anytime soon. So he looked at Arzali, Benito, and Tigo.

He knew that they resisted arrest since they fought the alchemists...but the trio seemed feared, that they think that jail is the best choice...not death.

So, he lifted one of his hands up, and the trio stepped back.

"You three had resisted arrest when you fought us, which gives you the only choice: death." he then snapped his fingers, and a spark of fire flew out and came in between Arzali and Tigo. When he released it, Benito watched as Arzali and Tigo yelled in pain, feeling the fire rip at their bodies.

Benito's eyes widened in horror, and he looked at Roy and Chiui. "Oh god...please, no! Stop this! We will have ourselves arrested and leave this all behind."

Chiui could see that Benito didn't like seeing this. She could understand, and so could Roy. She exhaled. "Well, that's not the right choice for this situation. If you three had not resisted arrest, then that would've been the right choice to make."

She then felt herself hesitate before she kicked Benito in the stomach hard, causing him to hit the ground. When he tried to get back up, he saw Chiui standing in front of him, with a sorrowful look on her face...and a fireball in one of her hands.

"...I'm sorry we have to follow the orders to kill..." she muttered, before raising her voice to its normal level, "but this...is for my country."

And with that, she threw the fireball downwards at Benito's chest, then snapped her fingers. She watched as he screamed in agony, feeling the same pain that Arzali and Benito felt...in which they were already dead now.

She then watched as Benito twitched before become motionless. He was now a burnt corpse like Arzali and Tigo...and Chiui felt...disgusted.

She couldn't believe that she had just done this. She knew that Benito was right when he said that they would have themselves arrested, rather than face death.

_But if I disobeyed the orders to kill...then...I would've faced strict consequences. _she sighed sadly, and felt tears emerge in her eyes. _I wouldn't want to face being court-martialed, or worse...being executed._

Roy could see that Chiui regretted what she just did. He saw that under her eyes were dark circles...the eyes of a murderer. He exhaled sadly, and rested a hand on her shoulder.

She choked on her tears before speaking up. "C-Cousin Roy...why...why does it have to be like this?!" her orange eyes then became glassy, and she hid her face with her hands, which had some blood stains on them from the killing. "...They were guilty of the crime they committed...but...but they didn't deserve to die..."

"I know." The dark-haired Colonel hugged Chiui, who hugged him back. Silence came over the two cousins before Roy continued his sentence. "But in the eyes of the people that witnessed the murder, or the police that investigated the murder...they would have them jailed and probably put on a death sentence for the social speaker they killed, the alchemists that they killed as well. So...killing them here would've prevented that from happening."

"T-True..." Chiui's voice was shaky. She didn't want to say anymore about it.

The two pulled back from their hug.

"Come on." Roy gave Chiui a reassuring smile. "Let's get back to the train."

Chiui gave him a smile, which was more low-spirited than high-spirited. "...Alright."

And with that, they made their way back to the train station. But before doing so, they met with the Ishvalans they encountered before, and told them the news. The Ishvalans seemed happy and relieved, and Chiui and Roy promised that they will find people to help the Ishvalans fix one of their hometowns.

They then said their goodbyes to the Flame Alchemists as the two got on the train, and back to Central.

Yay! I finally finished this! However, I don't have any ideas for the 10th chapter yet. Also, before working on Chapter 9, I was thinking of putting "Flaming Minds" on hiatus, but since I already had Chapter 9 outlined in my head, I just went and worked on it. So now, "Flaming Minds" will go on hiatus until I finish Chapter 10.

So stay tuned! :)

It has now been 1 year since Chiui has been in the military. She remembered how last July, she had met Alphonse, Edward, and the others that are now close friends of hers...not to mention meeting her cousin, Roy. She liked to help him on errands when he was off, like carrying groceries. Riza, on the other head, was now together with Roy, and Chiui was happy.

Also, she was more happy to be spending more time with Lan Fan and Ling. Chiui got time to chat with Lan Fan, and shared what they've been thinking. Lan Fan said that she was glad that Ling got together with Chiui...since she knew that Ling had always liked Chiui since their first meeting 11 years ago.

Chiui couldn't believe that it has already been eleven years, but hated how it's now been 8 years since her parents and brother's demise. _Another year of happiness follows with another year of grief..._she thought sadly when she realized that.

Besides that, speaking of Ling, Chiui got to go on more dates...with most of them being missions instead of dates. Chiui didn't mind, even though she hated it when Greed took over Ling at certain times.

"Chiui?" she heard a feminine voice call her name, making her come out of her train of thoughts.

She shook her head, and blinked. She then locked her orange eyes on the person's eyes, and saw them to be Riza's.

Chiui smiled nervously, adding in a laugh of the same manner. "Oh, sorry, Lieutenant Hawkeye. I...was thinking of last year. A lot has happened since then."

The blonde-haired woman smiled warmly, and nodded. "That's true, 2nd Lieutenant Youngsen."

Chiui grinned, liking the new rank. She had just gotten promoted to 2nd Lieutenant last week, and was proud to have two stars instead of one when she was a Major. Most of her life, she didn't really feel proud of the accomplishments she got when she was younger. But now at 16, she had that feeling, and was confused of why she put herself down in the past.

She then saw the papers she had on her desk, and saw that she hadn't stacked them up yet. "Whoops." She said to herself, and stacked them up. She then heard her name being called, and turned to see who it was.

It was Fuery, and he looked nervous.

"Sergeant Major Kain Fuery?" Chiui tilted her head to the side, confused of his expression. "Why do you look so concerned?"

"This paper..." he told her, looking down at the said object in his hand, then back at Chiui. "Bradley gave this to me for you."

"Bradley?" Chiui repeated the name to herself, and felt fear rise up inside of her. So without hesitation, she took the paper and read it to herself. She then gasped.

The letter had read:

_Dear Second Lieutenant Youngsen,_

_ Today, I am going to assign you and Roy Mustang on a mission together. This is not like the missions that you've gone before, since those were considered practice missions. _

_This mission will be at the Arios valley, where it has been reported that there are runaway alchemists, not state alchemists, that have recently been found guilty in the murder of a well-known social speaker, Francis Doiley. _

_So, if the runaway alchemists resist arrest, then you and Mustang know what to do...shoot to kill. Or in this case, burn them to a crisp._

_From Fuhrer Bradley_

"What...what type of letter is this?" her hand shook when she read over it one more time. At the beginning of the letter, she was excited to be going on a mission with her cousin, but become confused when Bradley called the missions that she has been on since last year "practice missions". _How could those even be called practice missions? _she thought. _...Those practice missions had gotten harder in the past few months, and Ling, Lan Fan, and I almost came close to meeting death right before our very eyes!_

Chiui slid her teeth together, and clenched the piece of paper in her hand, crumpling it. Putting the thought of the peculiar name of the missions aside, she couldn't believe that Bradley would want her to start following the orders to kill somebody...no matter if they were innocent or guilty.

Never has Chiui in her life killed anybody, but she's heard from her cousin Roy, and his team about what it was like to kill someone in the Ishval war. They ended up regretting what they did, and also it made them have "the eyes of a murderer". And Chiui didn't want that.

_...But, if I refuse, I will be court-martialed...or worse._ Chiui felt a lump appear in her throat as those words passed through in her mind. She then put the piece of paper in her pocket, and exhaled.

"Alright, I'll get going then." She looked at Fuery, and saluted to him. "...Thanks for telling me, Sergeant Major."

"No problem, Second Lieutenant Youngsen." he saluted her back, and watched as she walked past him and made her way to Roy's office.

He could see the concern she had on her face, which she tried to hide by looking self-assured. The confidence didn't work out that well, and Fuery sighed sadly.

"Poor child..." he said to himself as he made his way back to his workplace in the building. "She has to start doing those missions at such a young age..."

"Ario?" The dark-haired Colonel questioned Chiui as they walked to the train. He saw his cousin nod, and then exhaled. "...Well, I'm not surprised."

Chiui's orange eyes widened. "You're not surprised?"

Roy shook his head. "Well, Ario is known for the high crime rate in its city, and it's been going on for a while. But to hear about runaway alchemists only makes it worse." He then saw Chiui's worried expression, and knew she was thinking about Bradley's orders: "Shoot to kill."

"We'll have to follow the Fuhrer's orders, no matter if we want to obey them or not." He reassured her, which didn't make her feel any better. "So...let's go."

The train had already come after the two had finished talking, and they got on.

Chiui admired the view from outside as the train started moving along the train tracks, but realized that she had something on her mind. She looked away from the window for a moment.

It was about Ling Yao and Lan Fan, how Bradley didn't mention them in the letter.

"Is something wrong, cousin?" she heard the Colonel question her, and she looked up at him, locking her orange eyes on his black eyes.

Chiui nodded. "...Well, I was thinking about the letter, how Bradley had teamed me up with you, but didn't mention Ling and Lan Fan's names in there. Does...does Bradley think that they are a risk?"

"I don't think so," Roy replied after giving that question some thought, "but he's noticed how you've been teamed up with them since last year by me or one of the other members of my team. ...So, taking back what I said at the beginning, he might think that the two of them are a risk, and it might interfere with his...plans."

"Plans?" Chiui raised an eyebrow, since she's heard Roy mention that word from time to time when talking about the Fuhrer. Even though she didn't know what Bradley's plans were, she had a feeling that they were not positive.

Roy shooed that word away with his hand. "But I don't like the idea of him keeping Ling and Lan Fan away from the missions you are in. You share a certain bond with them, since you've known the two of them for a long time."

"True." Chiui agreed. "But I do have a feeling that Bradley is doing this because of Greed possessing Ling. Bradley knows that Greed has rebelled the Homunculi for a second time, and doesn't like it."

"...Although Ling seems to be in more control of his body recently." Roy added, and went into thought.

The redhead left him alone for him to think, and looked back out at the window. She realized that she didn't have her usual band aid over her head, but she didn't really care. Besides, she's been embarrassed of the Flame Alchemist symbol on her forehead for a long time...and knew that she couldn't hide it for long. She then focused her attention on Ling and Lan Fan, and wondered how they were doing right now.

_I'm sure that they were confused, not to mention disappointed, in Bradley's choice...if they have found out or not. _she thought. _But...I hope that Ling and Lan Fan are alright, and are not in any harm._

Speaking of which, Ling and Lan Fan's eyes widened when they got the news.

"Bradley did what?!" Ling made sure that his reaction wasn't too loud, because he didn't want the military members walking by Al, Ling, and Lan Fan to hear him.

Alphonse was looking down at the ground, and exhaled sadly. "I'm sorry, Ling, but big brother and I had just found this out from Sergeant Major Kain Fuery. Ed and I had asked him where Chiui was going in such a hurry, since she was walking faster than usual to Roy's office. He explained that she wasn't in a rush, and then went into further detail...that Bradley had decided for Chiui to go on "real missions", not "practice missions". Fuery also commented that Bradley is suspicious of you two and is trying to keep you two away from Chiui as much as possible...possibly because of Greed."

Lan Fan and Ling got troubling looks on their faces, and Lan Fan rested a hand on her forehead. "...I can't believe this is happening." she muttered, then looked at the Prince. "All this time, Bradley didn't seem to mind with the Prince and I aiding Chiui on her missions."

"That's true." Ling agreed with his bodyguard. "But Chiui is my girlfriend, and your friend. If she is put into any danger, or dies on a mission, then you and I will feel the guilt of not being there to save her from Death's grasp."

Lan Fan only nodded, and became silent. The 15-year old Prince of Xing did the same.

"...There has to be some way that Lan Fan and I can aid Chiui on her mission, without Bradley spying on us." Ling spoke up.

"Yes." Alphonse agreed, and then saw Edward walking towards them. He had just come from taking a shower in one of the bathrooms, and had on a white, button-up shirt, black pants, and shoes. He had his red coat over his shoulders.

"Did you tell them?" Edward questioned, and Al nodded. Lan Fan and Ling gave the two brothers baffled looks, not knowing what they were talking about. But when Al reassured them that it was about Chiui going on a "real mission", their confusion quickly faded away.

"Before you came in, I was asking Al if there was a way to help Chiui on her mission with Roy." Ling spoke up to Edward. "I know that her cousin will help keep her safe, but Lan Fan and I will feel humbled if Chiui gets damaged during the mission...even with the Colonel by her side."

"...Well, you're right on there possibly being a way." Edward rested a hand on his chin, and his mind jumped onto his train of thoughts. "But you're also right on Bradley spying on you two." he then remembered the city that Chiui and Roy were assigned to. "...But did you two get the name of the city the two were assigned to?"

Lan Fan and Ling looked at each other, then back at Ed. They shook their heads.

The golden-haired alchemist exhaled, since he assumed that they would've found out about that. "...Well, the city is named Arios, and it is known for it's high crime rate. And it has been recently reported of there being runaway alchemists that murdered a well-known social speaker."

"Oh." Ling blinked, since he's heard of Arios and the crime rate. He then thought over what he was talking about before, which if there was a possible way to help Chiui. He knew that Bradley would send spies or use Gluttony to track their scent, so that dismissed the idea for good. In addition, he's heard that the runaway alchemists are strong, since they have killed anyone that has been assigned to arrest them.

_But Chiui and Roy are known to be powerful alchemists, and are known to have a good strategy. _Ling added in thought. _...So I think Lan Fan and I should have faith in Chiui and know that she and the Colonel will be okay._

He told Lan Fan what he had on his mind, and Lan Fan thought about it. She then smiled, and nodded.

"I guess it's because we've always been on Chiui's side for a long time." Lan Fan spoke up. "We've always helped her on her missions, and she has always helped us whenever we were injured or in danger. And she has grown confident since last year, when she first enlisted into the military."

"Yep." Ling grinned, and ended the conversation with a short laugh.

Back in Arios, the train has come to halt, signaling that the train has come to Chiui and Roy's destination.

The two cousin got off of the train, and walked out of the train station. As they set foot into Arios, Chiui saw that it wasn't what she expected.

She expected it to be a lively town, with a thriving population...but it was the exact opposite. Most of the buildings were torn down or damaged. There was poor people in the streets, begging for food. Mothers walked by Chiui and Roy, crying children in their arms.

Chiui hated seeing this, and so did Roy. It reminded him too much of the Ishvalan war, where he saw the same type of situation occur. He felt penitence rush inside of him, and he put it aside by shaking his head.

"E-Excuse me..."

Chiui and Roy blinked, and saw that there was a little girl standing before them. She was holding a teddy bear in her hand, which had an ear missing, revealing the fuzz inside of it. The little girl has blonde hair, white skin, and red eyes. When Roy saw the red eyes, his eyes widened.

_A...An Ishvalan? _The dark-haired Colonel couldn't believe it. He was going to complete his thought when he saw a woman that he assumed to be the little girl's mother, pick her up. He saw that she had red eyes as well.

"I'm sorry." the mother apologized. "Lilia tends to wander off when she has seen new arrivals." She then hugged her little girl. "...But are you...state alchemists?"

Chiui and Roy looked at each other, then back at the mom. They then nodded. They were confused when they saw the mother suddenly step back in fear, her red eyes widened.

"Aha! So you've come to hurt us, haven't you?!" her voice rose, which didn't help much as it continued to do so. "You are part of the rogue alchemists' team!"

Chiui and Roy could see other people with Ishvalan eyes walking towards them, making a crowd around them.

Chiui raised her hands in protest. "M'am...w-we can explain. We're not part of their team at all. We...have been assigned to arrest them."

"Yeah, right!" they heard an old man yell. "You're just saying that to hide the truth-"

"We're not! Honest!" Chiui reassured him, and started feeling panicked. "Fuhrer Bradley assigned us to arrest the runaway alchemists..."

"And if the alchemist resist, then we were given orders to kill."

The Ishvalans gasped, and Lilia's mother could see that by Chiui and Roy's expression, that they were indeed telling the truth.

"...Alright." The mother exhaled. "We apologize for jumping to conclusions. We've...been like that since Benito, Arzali, and Tigo have escaped into our city and completely destroyed it."

Roy went to say, "I see.", but the names seemed to be familiar to him. "Benito,Arzali, and Tigo? ...They've been reported to be on the loose for the past 5 years."

"Well, that seems to be them...the 'runaway alchemists'." Chiui concluded. "So we have to get moving."

"Right." Roy got his Flame Alchemist gloves out, and slipped them onto his hands. Chiui just clapped her hands together, to reassure confidence in herself that her and Roy can do this.

"So where have the rogue alchemists gone off to?" Chiui turned and asked a young Ishvalan man the question.

"I-I believe that they ran off to Renos, Arios' capital city." he explained, pointing in the direction of where the city was, which was north.

"Alright." Chiui then bowed. "Thank you."

And with that, Chiui and Roy waved goodbye to the Ishvalans, who waved back. They had trust in the two alchemists now, and knew that they could defeat the three rogue alchemists.

It was almost afternoon when Roy and Chiui were almost at Renos. Chiui thought it would take about 4-5 minutes to get there, but it felt more like an hour.

"...I didn't know that some of the Ishvalans took refuge in Arios, considering that it used to be an abandoned city." Roy was talking to himself in awe. "Well, I'm relieved that they have found another place to live in." He realized that his mind was shifting to the Civil War, so that is why he stopped there.

He then focused his attention on his 16-year old cousin. He went to ask, "Do you feel the same, Chiui?" but she seemed to be thinking the same thing. So he put that aside.

They then heard somebody's footsteeps pitter-pattering across the ground in front of them, and the two alchemists froze. They were just one inch away from Renos when they heard the sound.

Chiui heard the sound again, but it seemed to be closer.

"What...what is that coming from—" Chiui questioned, and she caught eye of a masculine figure charging towards her. She dodged it just in time, and struck the figure with one of her fireballs after activating her alchemy.

The man screamed in pain, and fell to the ground on his side. Chiui and Roy then heard two men coming towards the injured man, and Roy's eyes widened.

It was Arzali and Tigo. They were both twin brothers: both had blonde, short-cute hair, blue eyes, white skin, and freckles. They wore business suits, even though Benito, the Hispanic, dark haired,bearded man on the ground, was wearing olive-colored civilian clothes. He didn't seem to be wearing his military uniform like the twins were.

Chiui and Roy instantly got ready to fight.

"So you're the 'rogue alchemists'." Chiui spoke up, surprising the three. They stepped back an inch.

"Yes...we are." Benito, who was being helped up by Arzali, spoke up. His comment revealed that he spoke broken English. "Why, were you two sent to kill us?"

Roy nodded. "Yes." He then tugged at one of his gloves, straightening it out.

Benito can see that he was getting ready to fight. "We should've known. Five years ago, we three had committed the crime of murdering a social speaker. He was part of our past, and was responsible for killing Arzali and Tigo's parents. We thought that was going to help avenge him, but we found out that he was an icon of Edoros, the neighboring city of Arios."

"So...you three ran off so you wouldn't get caught?" Chiui questioned. She wanted to ask another question after that, but she suddenly felt guilt rush inside her. She didn't realize what it was from.

"Seems like you three thought it was a clever idea back then to do so, and for you to kill any soldiers or alchemists that were assigned to kill you." Roy finished it off for her, though his addition wasn't in the form of a question.

Tigo smirked, then chuckled. "Well, those soldiers and alchemists deserved it." He then closed his eyes. Arzali and Benito did the same.

Sharp gasps escaped Chiui and Roy's lips as they saw strange alchemy symbols appear on the trio's arms. Arzali's, as Chiui saw his, represented the ground. Benito's represented sky, and Tigo's represented grass.

"Oh god..." Chiui muttered, and the Colonel didn't have to ask why. "Their alchemy...is based off three of the main elements!"

Roy gritted his teeth, and furrowed his eyebrows in anger.

"Those Ishvalans were right. Based on the elements that the trio has, they are indeed strong." he then snapped his fingers, sending a flare of fire at the trio, who had dodged it. "...This is going to be a long fight."

And it was. Once the battle was over, Chiui and Roy had suffered wounds on their arms and face. Chiui had minor wounds on her arms, with those being cuts. She had suffered a blow to the head, which caused blood to drip down from her forehead, covering her Flame Alchemist mark. The blood stopped at her eyelids, and started to dry off. Roy had minor cuts on his gloves, and head, but it didn't affect his flame alchemy.

The rogue trio, however, were more wounded the Flame Alchemists. They couldn't believe that two flame alchemists were beating them, and are still alive to tell the tale.

Seeing that the trio was on the verge of defeat, Chiui and Roy closed their eyes, then exhaled.

Roy could see that Chiui was worried about having to follow orders to kill, and knew that they would have to do anytime soon. So he looked at Arzali, Benito, and Tigo.

He knew that they resisted arrest since they fought the alchemists...but the trio seemed feared, that they think that jail is the best choice...not death.

So, he lifted one of his hands up, and the trio stepped back.

"You three had resisted arrest when you fought us, which gives you the only choice: death." he then snapped his fingers, and a spark of fire flew out and came in between Arzali and Tigo. When he released it, Benito watched as Arzali and Tigo yelled in pain, feeling the fire rip at their bodies.

Benito's eyes widened in horror, and he looked at Roy and Chiui. "Oh god...please, no! Stop this! We will have ourselves arrested and leave this all behind."

Chiui could see that Benito didn't like seeing this. She could understand, and so could Roy. She exhaled. "Well, that's not the right choice for this situation. If you three had not resisted arrest, then that would've been the right choice to make."

She then felt herself hesitate before she kicked Benito in the stomach hard, causing him to hit the ground. When he tried to get back up, he saw Chiui standing in front of him, with a sorrowful look on her face...and a fireball in one of her hands.

"...I'm sorry we have to follow the orders to kill..." she muttered, before raising her voice to its normal level, "but this...is for my country."

And with that, she threw the fireball downwards at Benito's chest, then snapped her fingers. She watched as he screamed in agony, feeling the same pain that Arzali and Benito felt...in which they were already dead now.

She then watched as Benito twitched before become motionless. He was now a burnt corpse like Arzali and Tigo...and Chiui felt...disgusted.

She couldn't believe that she had just done this. She knew that Benito was right when he said that they would have themselves arrested, rather than face death.

_But if I disobeyed the orders to kill...then...I would've faced strict consequences. _she sighed sadly, and felt tears emerge in her eyes. _I wouldn't want to face being court-martialed, or worse...being executed._

Roy could see that Chiui regretted what she just did. He saw that under her eyes were dark circles...the eyes of a murderer. He exhaled sadly, and rested a hand on her shoulder.

She choked on her tears before speaking up. "C-Cousin Roy...why...why does it have to be like this?!" her orange eyes then became glassy, and she hid her face with her hands, which had some blood stains on them from the killing. "...They were guilty of the crime they committed...but...but they didn't deserve to die..."

"I know." The dark-haired Colonel hugged Chiui, who hugged him back. Silence came over the two cousins before Roy continued his sentence. "But in the eyes of the people that witnessed the murder, or the police that investigated the murder...they would have them jailed and probably put on a death sentence for the social speaker they killed, the alchemists that they killed as well. So...killing them here would've prevented that from happening."

"T-True..." Chiui's voice was shaky. She didn't want to say anymore about it.

The two pulled back from their hug.

"Come on." Roy gave Chiui a reassuring smile. "Let's get back to the train."

Chiui gave him a smile, which was more low-spirited than high-spirited. "...Alright."

And with that, they made their way back to the train station. But before doing so, they met with the Ishvalans they encountered before, and told them the news. The Ishvalans seemed happy and relieved, and Chiui and Roy promised that they will find people to help the Ishvalans fix one of their hometowns.

They then said their goodbyes to the Flame Alchemists as the two got on the train, and back to Central.

Yay! I finally finished this! However, I don't have any ideas for the 10th chapter yet. Also, before working on Chapter 9, I was thinking of putting "Flaming Minds" on hiatus, but since I already had Chapter 9 outlined in my head, I just went and worked on it. So now, "Flaming Minds" will go on hiatus until I finish Chapter 10.

So stay tuned! :)


	10. The Return

**Okay. So I was planning to take a hiatus from Flaming Minds, but after thinking about it, I decided that I will work on Flaming Minds until I get to a certain chapter (probably around ch.15-16, approximately). So here's the 10th chapter! WOO!**

Chiui and Roy were almost at the military background They had stopped at the hospital to have their wounds bandaged. Chiui noticed that she had to wear a huge band-aid around her forehead, even though the bleeding had stopped. She felt uncomfortable wearing it, since she just got used to not wearing her original band-aid around her forehead.

_This is going to be weird until it's time to take it off..._she thought as she and Roy opened the doors to the building. They were immediately greeted by Edward and Alphonse, as well as Riza and Fuery.

"Hey, Colonel and 2nd Lieutenant." Al and Ed greeted them at the same time.

"So how did the mission go?" Fuery questioned them, with a hopeful smile on his face.

Roy and Chiui were quiet for a second, and then they looked each other. "The mission went alright." Chiui spoke up, forcing a smile onto her face. "We were able to track down the rogue alchemists, but they resisted arrest when they fought us."

"...We ended up having to kill them." Roy finished it up, and the four could see the sorrow in his face, even though he tried to hide it. Chiui didn't do much of a good job hiding it, since her eyebrows were furrowed in a regretful manner, as well as her smile had quickly faded.

Fuery and the others could tell, and they nodded sadly. "Well, we're glad that the mission went alright."

Roy and Chiui nodded in response, then saluted Fuery and Riza. Chiui then went to her office, which used to be Maria Ross's office. She said her goodbyes to Roy, who was going back to his office.

Right as the 16-year old redhead arrived in her office, she was greeted by Ling and Lan Fan.

They were relieved that their friend was alright, but when they saw the sorrow on her face, they became quiet. They could tell what it was from the mission.

"Don't tell me..." Ling's eyes were widened in shock.

Chiui nodded sadly. "Yes. Roy and I had to kill those three rogue alchemists."

Lan Fan and Ling both gasped.

"I couldn't disobey the orders to kill from the Fuhrer." Chiui explained. "You guys know that if I did, then I'll suffer consequences."

"We know that." Lan Fan spoke up, then gritted her teeth. She rested the palm of her automail arm on her forehead. "...But...you shouldn't have been assigned to go a mission like that, knowing that you will have to kill people that are wanted by the law and military...no matter if they're innocent or not."

"True." Chiui sighed. She became silent once more, and noticed that Lan Fan had rested a hand on her shoulder. She looked at the female bodyguard of the Xingese Prince. Lan Fan gave her a reassuring smile, hoping to cheer up her friend.

Chiui only have her a slight smile, then a small laugh. The mission had brought her mood down. She was happy and cheerful at the beginning, thinking that she would go on another mission with her Xingese boyfriend, Ling, and her good friend, Lan Fan. But when she realized that she is going on a mission involving orders, she instantly became depressed.

She hasn't had that feeling ever since her parents and brother died in the fire, and her grandmother, Rai, passing away last year. _So why did it have to come back now? _Chui gritted her teeth, and rested her hands on both side of her head. _...I thought I was never going to face that feeling again..._

Chiui knew that she should stop thinking about that, so she shook her head to get rid of the thought. She heard her stomach growl, and noticed that Ling and Lan Fan both heard it. She blushed out of embarrassment.

"...Well,um, since there doesn't seem to be any missions to go on now, how about we get a bite to eat?"

"Sure." Ling and Lan Fan smiled, and the three set off to find a restaurant.

They found a restaurant somewhere in Central that served Xingese-like food, and Chiui smiled when she found out that they had ramen. Ling and Lan Fan just ordered what they thought would taste delicious.

So in a matter of minutes, Chiui had a few empty bowls of ramen before her. Ling and Lan Fan had plenty of bowls stacked up, and Ling was still eating a piece of chicken. Lan Fan had already finished her food.

While waiting for Ling to finish his food, the redhead was thinking about the letter Fuery had given her, about Bradley's orders...how he wants to keep Ling and Lan Fan away from Chiui as much as possible when it comes to missions.

_But what happens if I'm not on a mission, and I am with Ling and Lan Fan?_ she pondered. _Will Bradley track us down with his military members or by himself?_

"Ish sumthing wrong, Cheewee?" Ling questioned her, with the piece of chicken still in his mouth.

Chiui blinked, since she had jumped onto a train of thoughts in her mind without realizing it. "...Well, I was thinking about Bradley. Will he be able to track us down if I am hanging out with you guys after my missions are done?"

"I'm sure he would." Ling replied after some thought, and after he had finished off the rest of his chicken. "...Well, if he has Gluttony with him, then he can. Gluttony can track any scent of a human, alchemist, or a Homunculus."

"I see." Chiui exhaled. "I hope he doesn't have Gluttony with him. That Homunculus creeped me out. He is always hungry."

Ling and Lan Fan knew what he meant, since Ling remembered that a while ago, he, Ed, and Envy were swallowed by Gluttony when the Homunculus was enraged. But thankfully, they had managed to get out, but had come face-to-face with the Father.

Chiui checked the time on one the clocks that was one of the buildings, and saw that it was almost evening- around 4:50.

"Well, I think we should get going back." Chiui exhaled, and stood up. Ling and Lan Fan stood up as well. They then noticed the waiter coming for the bill, and seemed shocked by all the plates and bowls of food that were on the table. Chiui laughed nervously, and said that she had enough money to give to the waiter. Once she gave him the money, the trio left, after thanking the waiter for the food.

Chiui slumped down onto her bed when she reached Riza's apartment later in the evening. She was helping Roy with his errands after having lunch with Ling and Lan Fan. Roy had to find information about what's been going on with the missions and the Homunculus being involved from them. He had to meet in secret with Madame Christmas, his foster mother, so Chiui tagged along. But when Roy got distracted when he saw a pretty woman, Chiui slapped him across the back of the head, reminding him about Riza.

Roy apologized, and he dismissed Chiui for the rest of the day.

"I'm glad the day's finally over." she said to herself as she got up from her bed, walking over to her mirror.

She unraveled her braid, letting her long hair loose. She then put it into a ponytail and got into her nightgown. She then lied down onto her bed, and put the sheets over her.

"I can finally get some sleep." And with that, she exhaled before falling asleep.

Unfortunately, she was woken up with a start when she heard her door slam open, and the light turned on. She shielded her eyes with her arms, and then rubbed her eyes when her eyes got adjusted to the light.

She saw that it was Ling that opened the door, and Riza was behind him.

"L-Ling?" Chiui's voice was a tad drowsy. "What are you doing here at a time like this?" She had glanced the time to see what time it was, and it was 10:30. She only had two hours of sleep.

"It's an emergency!" he told her with an urgent tone. "I apologize for barging in like this, but she's in danger!"

Chiui's eyes widened, and she quickly got up. "Who? You mean as in Lan Fan?"

"Yes!" The Xingese Prince replied, and looked over his shoulder at Riza. Like Chiui, the blonde 2nd Lieutenant was confused, but she seemed to understand now. "We have to hurry."

"Alright. Just give me a second to get into my uniform." she told him, and Ling and Riza closed the door and waited in the hallway as she did what she said she was going to do.

Once she was into her military uniform, she came out of her room. She didn't have her hair braided, but she didn't care right now.

"Let's get going!" she told Riza and Ling, and the three headed off.

_This is odd..._Chiui thought to herself as the trio was almost out of their way of the apartment._ Lan Fan is usually by Ling's side, even if he has a habit of wandering off. So why is Lan Fan the one that got captured?_

Ling was able to track down the enemy in seconds, which didn't take the trio long to find Lan Fan. They discovered that the place that Lan Fan was taken to, which was in a forest close to Central.

The three were deep in the forest when they heard a devilish giggle of a child. Ling, Chiui, and Riza froze, and their muscles tightened.

Riza and Ling looked at each other with knowing, but fearful looks on their faces.

Chiui furrowed in her eyebrows in confusion. "Hm? What is it? Do you recognize the laugh?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Riza nodded, and Ling let Greed take control for right now. "It's Pride, one of the Homunculi!"

Chiui gasped, and her eyes widened. She, for some odd reason, felt like she knew who he was...or that she's seen him before.

But as she thought about it more, she knows that she's seen Bradley before with a little kid, who goes by Selim Bradley. Chiui knew it would be strange for an adopted child to have a father that's really a Homunculus, and for the child not to know that they are the said being.

"...So Selim Bradley is Pride?" Chiui guessed.

"You got that right." a chilling voice revealed itself to the trio. Chiui, Greed, and Riza watched as Pride stepped forward.

He had an evil smirk on his face, and his eyes were purple like Envy's. Chiui saw that he _did _match the appearance of Selim Bradley, so she didn't stand uncorrected.

Chiui gasped when Pride continued to walk forward, with somebody behind him. It was Lan Fan! Black strings that looked like hands at the ends of them were tied around her, mostly around her automail arm. The arm was starting to bleed slowly due to the pressure that was being put on it.

Ling suddenly took control, and his eyes widened. "Lan Fan!"

"Oh, is this your bodyguard?" Pride chuckled. "I should've known."

Ling growled. "Why did you do this, Pride? Why did you capture her when we were not looking?"

Pride became quiet for a moment. "...Well, Father wanted me to talk to Greed, the Homunculus that rebelled us once and has done it again. He wants to know why Greed has deciding to join your side."

Greed took over when he heard that, and became angry. "You know why I rebelled, Pride! So there is no questions that need to be asked or answered!"

"You're just saying that to end the conversation. What about...if I kill you here and give the Philsopher's Stone back to Father. Hopefully, your memories of your 'friends' will be gone for good, and you won't remember them any-" his sentence was cut off when he felt the strings that were tied around Lan Fan suddenly break off.

Lan Fan started making her way to the trio, and fell to her knees. Chiui ran over to her to pick her up, but Pride quickly grabbed hold of her and Lan Fan.

Pride tied the string around Lan Fan's body and automail arm again, and he tied strings around Chiui's waist and neck. Her breathing was altered drastically.

"L...Let go!" Chiui told the Homunculus through gritted teeth. Pride ignored her, and looked at Greed and the blonde 2nd Lieutenant.

"Why would Father have anything to do with me?" Greed growled. "He knows that I have rebelled the Homunculi, and I'm not going back!"

Pride didn't smile, his expression was solemn. He looked away, his eyebrows furrowed in irritation. "You don't have to remind us that. But he feels that you might be useful for the...dare I say it: Great Awakening." When he said the last two words, an evil smirk came across his lips.

Greed's eyes widened, and so did Chiui's. She remembered reading about the Great Awakening before, about what happened in Xerxes a long, long time ago. It was horrible, but it was how the Philsopher's Stone and the Father came to power. When she realized that, Chiui's expression became that of horror. She closed her eyes, and got ready to conjure a fireball in her hands.

Lan Fan saw what Chiui was doing, and with all her strength, she slowly start cutting at Pride's strings. Pride saw it instantly, and hit Lan Fan with one of the monster shadows behind him...the ones with the red eyes and teeth. Due to how it hit the female bodyguard, it knocked her out cold.

Pride didn't notice the fireball being kicked at him, since Chiui's arms were tied by the Homunculi's strings. It hit him right in the face, and he released Chiui, but not Lan Fan.

He then sent monster shadows at Chiui, who dodged most of them with Greed and Riza's help.

It then turned into a heated battle, in which the trio was able to save Lan Fan. Riza kept an eye on Lan Fan as Greed and Chiui were fighting Pride.

Pride ended up retreating, even though he wasn't wounded. He muttered something to Greed that Chiui and the others didn't hear, but Greed certainly heard it.

When it was silent, Greed let Ling take over, and Ling instantly ran over to Lan Fan, who was still unconscious. He carefully picked her up.

"...Lan Fan," he spoke up, feeling tears emerge in his eyes. He knew that she wasn't dead, but he was angered at himself. "I'm sorry for not knowing that you were captured at first...I had failed to protect one of my subjects in time, like I did with Fu." he then sighed. "But...at least, you're alive."

He then looked at the two Second Lieutenants with a serious look on his face.

"We need to get her to the hospital." he ordered. "Let's go!"

And with that, the redhead and blonde woman followed the Xingese prince to a nearby hospital, in hope of finding a doctor that had experience with automail.


	11. After the Encounter

Lan Fan's vision was blurry as she came to. She blinked a couple of times to get rid of it, and carefully sat up. She looked around, seeing that she was in a hospital room, with a sheet over a half of her body.

She wondered what had happened, and then saw that her bodyguard outfit was lying on a chair next to her, and that she had on a hospital gown, with one of the sleeves torn off for her automail.

The female bodyguard was still baffled, but looked nervous as she realized nobody was in the room.

_...Where is the Prince? Where's Chiui and Riza?_ She thought. _...I...need to get up to find them..._

"Don't move, Lan Fan. It's going to put stress on your injuries."

When she heard that familiar, masculine voice, she gasped. She saw that it was Ling, along with Chiui and Riza.

Lan Fan became quiet for a moment, and looked down at the floor. She then locked her black eyes on Ling's.

"My Prince..."she began, not knowing what to say. "What happened? Why am I here?"

"You were knocked out cold by Pride, the Homunculus we fought in the forest." Ling explained. "He ended up retreating, so we don't know where he's gone to. But...you suffered a lot of injuries from the strings, especially your automail arm. It was bleeding."

Lan Fan's eyes widened when what Ling had said clicked into her brain. She rested her head down on her pillow carefully, and gritted her teeth. "...I...should've remembered..." she exhaled in frustration. "I apologize that I had failed you once again, my Prince."

"You didn't fail me." Ling gave her a reassuring smile, and she gave him a surprised look. Ling then looked down at the floor. "...It was me that failed to protect you. I failed to find out right away about you being captured...and failed to save you from suffering those injuries."

Lan Fan became quiet, and didn't say anymore. She knew that if she told him that it wasn't his fault, then the conversation would continue on with apologies.

"...So how long are you going to be here, Lan Fan?" Chiui questioned, breaking the silence.

"She's going to be in the hospital for three days." A doctor spoke up as he came into the room. Chiui, Riza, Ling, and Lan Fan looked at him.

"Three days?" Ling questioned, and nodded over to Lan Fan's automail arm. "Are you sure?...The pressure that the Homunculus put on Lan Fan's arm had caused it to bleed out. The Homunculus didn't injured any other part of her body."

The Doctor thought about that, and came to the conclusion that Ling was right. The Prince was worried that the automail arm would take longer than three days to heal, and the Doctor could tell.

"Well, she'll be in here for five days then. Her injuries might heal by then."

"Okay." Ling and Chiui said at the same time, and looked at each other in confusion. But they and Riza knew that Lan Fan can heal in that time.

It was already midnight, and Chiui was starting to feel dozy. So Riza decided to go with the redhead back to the apartment. Ling stayed with Lan Fan until the Doctor told him it was time to leave.

Lan Fan could see the worried look on Ling's face as he was leaving the room. The Xingese Prince saw it, and showed through his reassuring smile that she'll be alright here until she heals.

He then closed the door behind him, and the doctor began to tend to Lan Fan's injuries.

It was now morning, around 7 p.m. Chiui got up from her bed, and stretched. When she got the apartment with Riza, she changed back into her night clothes, and got some sleep. She estimated that she got about 7 hours of sleep, which to her was good...since she wouldn't be tired.

When she got into her military uniform and walked to the living room, she saw that the blonde 2nd Lieutenant was already awake, with her military uniform on, and a cup of steaming coffee on the table. There was a coaster under it so the bottom of the cup wouldn't make a ring stain.

Riza locked her brown eyes on the 16-year old redhead, and smiled after taking a sip of her coffee. "Good morning, Chiui."

Chiui smiled, and rubbed her eyes. "Morning, Riza." she then sat down. She saw that there was already breakfast ready for her. It was a stack of pancakes with butter on it. She looked confused, since she usually made her own breakfast in the mornings. She glanced at Riza.

"Riza, did you...do this?" she questioned, pointed to the pancakes.

Riza was quiet for a moment before speaking up. "Yes. You had fallen asleep right after getting back into your night clothes, so I thought that I would fix breakfast for you. You were bushed after helping Ling save Lan Fan."

"...True." Chiui nodded, and started eating her pancakes. She then thought late yesterday about the fight with Pride. Why did Pride want to lure Ling to the forest by capturing Lan Fan? Was it to talk to Greed?

_It was._ Chiui remembered. _But why would Pride want to talk to Greed, when he knows that the Homunculus is on our side, and won't be convinced by Pride to join Father's side again? Is it because he might find Greed useful for the Great Awakening, when the Father will...?_

She didn't have to think of that anymore, since she had come to a conclusion. When she suddenly said, "Got it!", she startled Riza, who thankfully didn't have the cup of coffee in her hands.

"Got what?" The 29-year old questioned the redhead with a raised eyebrow. "What were you thinking about?"

Chiui blinked, and smiled embarrassingly. "Oh, sorry." She then went into detail what she was thinking about. Riza nodded in comprehension for time to time as Chiui explained.

"That's true." Riza concluded, but a question then clicked into her brain. "But do you suppose that the Father has made an alliance with another evil power, and that he might want to bring all the Homunculi together, Greed included?"

"Yes..." Chiui had replied between eating, "but we don't know who it is...but the ally of the Father might know about the demons that are being tortured by the Homunculi. The demons...might be rebelling against the ally and the Father, and that's why the Homunculi are torturing them."

Riza's eyes widened, and then relaxed. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, even though she realized what Chiui theorized might be true. "...That could be it. I remember when we were fighting demons on one of the missions, how the demon's wings were black, signaling that they might've been humans before becoming those...or possibly Chimera with a human-like structure."

"Chimera...?" Chiui remembered hearing that word before, and gasped. "Oh my gosh, they must be Chimera! The Homunculi tend to torture the Chimera, and make them guard the underground. But these Chimera are different...so that's why they're being tormented so much. The Homunculi might be trying to get some kind of truth from them...if those Chimera can speak our language or the language of the Father's ally."

Riza didn't know what else to say, except for an "Mm-hm." as she took a last sip of her coffee, and went to put it into the sink to rinse it out. Chiui was already finished with her breakfast, joining Riza near the sink to rinse off her plate.

"Anyways, it's almost time for us to get to the building." The blonde woman spoke up. "So we need to hurry."

Once Chiui and Riza were in the building, they came across Roy Mustang, who greeted them at the door.

"Morning, cousin!" he greeted Chiui, then kissed Riza on the cheek. "Morning, Riza."

Riza smiled, and looked away, blushing. Chiui looked confused at Roy, since he didn't usually act like this. "Are you alright, cousin Roy?"

Roy gave her a baffled expression this time. "Yes...why?"

Chiui blinked, and looked down at the floor. "Well, you're usually serious and not so cheerful in the mornings. So how come are you opposite?"

Roy wasn't shocked by her question, and looked away for a moment. He then looked back at Riza and Chiui. "Bradley and Selim have disappeared, and we don't know where they've gone. The people that are in Bradley's team are using an excuse that Bradley is taking Selim somewhere to celebrate his birthday. They won't be back for a while, though."

"...I see." Riza nodded, and looked around. "So are the people in Bradley's team letting us off for the day?"

"Yes." Roy replied, and his eyebrows furrowed in anger. "...And it sounds suspicious. I have a bad feeling that Bradley and Selim are going to see the Father...though I don't know why they would have a connection with him."

"But if the team gave us a day off, then we'll have to go with it." Riza exhaled. "...Yes." Chiui agreed, though she hesitated at the beginning of her sentence. "But you and the Colonel's team will have to keep a close eye just in case."

"That's what we're going to do, cousin." Roy reassured the redhead. "Let's hope it doesn't concern the alchemists and State Alchemists...which is me and Fullmetal."

Chiui noticed that the dark-haired man had paused right after he said "State Alchemists" before continuing. Was there something that Roy didn't want to tell her? Was there someone else that is a State Alchemist...or is it possibly her that is a State Alchemist as well?

_No...that can't be. _Chiui was shocked, even though she knew that her theory was correct. _I don't have a State Alchemist watch with me to prove that I am one. So why would Roy hesitate-_

"Something wrong, 2nd Lieutenant?" Riza questioned her, causing her train of thoughts to go away.

"Oh, nothing." Chiui shook her head to get the thought away. She then looked around. "So where are Edward, Alphonse, and the others?"

"Edward and Alphonse have been sent to Briggs to see Olivier." Roy explained, and paused for a moment. "I don't know where the Xingese Prince and his bodyguard are."

"Did somebody call my name?" a masculine voice came out of nowhere, and caused the three to jump. They saw that it was Ling, with a smile on his face.

Roy, Riza, and Chiui didn't greet him at first, they just looked surprised.

"What? No 'hello'?" Ling gave them a confused look. The three were silent.

Chiui was the one to break the silence. "Ling, I thought you were still at the hospital, looking after Lan Fan."

"I was." Ling exhaled. "But the doctor told me to leave so that he can start healing Lan Fan and take a look at her automail."

"...I see." Chiui didn't have to say anything else. But when she remembered Bradley, her eyes widened. "Say, Ling, did you hear about Bradley and Selim being gone for most of the day today?"

Ling nodded. "Greed told me. He saw them leave on the train earlier today. But I don't believe that Selim has a birthday today. It has something to do with their Father."

"That's what we assume." Riza spoke up, and the dark-haired teenager looked at her. "But the other military members that are not on Mustang's team don't assume that."

"Of course they wouldn't." Ling sighed. "They have faith in Bradley, even though they don't know what Bradley is hiding."

"True." Roy concluded the conversation.

Everyone was silent for a brief moment.

"So if I am not assigned on any missions, or if Roy and Riza are not assigned onto any missions..." Chiui began, "what are we going to do now?"

"Well, we're going to work with Breda and the other members on our team to keep an eye on Bradley and his adopted son." Roy spoke up. "As for you and Ling, you can decide what to do today."

"Really?" Chiui raised an eyebrow. She then looked away for a moment. "Do you want us to help you and your team?"

Roy thought of that. He wanted to say "Yes.", but thought about what happened when they fighting Envy in the others in the underground. Before Chiui and the others had arrived, the Father had asked Roy if Chiui was a State Alchemist. Roy was surprised that Father knew her name, but had to tell him that Chiui is indeed a State Alchemist. _But..._he revealed. _It is the scars on her back that prove that she's one. _

The Father seemed pleased by his answer, and Roy knew what he was thinking...that he was thinking of making Chiui a Human Sacrifice. And Roy wouldn't have any of it. That is when he fought back, and that's when Chiui and the others came in.

"Hey, cousin!" Chiui called his name out, seeing that he was staring at the wall.

"Earth to cousin."

She waved her hand in front of his face. Thankfully, he shook his head to get out of his train of thoughts. If he was still spaced out, she would've had to snap her fingers in front of his face.

"...Sorry, cousin." he apologized. "I think that I might need some coffee." He then looked at Ling, then back at Chiui. "You two can go for now. Riza and I will be meeting up with the rest of the team."

Ling and Chiui glanced at each other with confused expressions, but nodded to show that they understood.

"Alright." Chiui rubbed the back of her head with her palm. "I guess that I'll go back to the apartment and change into casual clothing."

"And as for me, I think that the doctor is working on Lan Fan right now, so it won't be good to visit at this time." Ling added, since he wanted to see how Lan Fan was progressing on her healing. "So I guess I'll go with Chiui."

"Okay." Roy and Riza waved to them, and went to Roy's office to meet with the team.

The two 16-year old teenagers waved back, and headed to the said building Chiui mentioned.

Ling was waiting outside the apartment room door as Chiui was getting her clothing. She only replaced her military uniform shirt with a simple, short sleeved black shirt. She thought this would be okay for today.

As Chiui opened the door to the apartment room as she stepped out into the hallway, she could see that Ling had something on his mind, and it was Lan Fan.

Ling could tell, and exhaled. Chiui knew that Ling was still blaming himself inside his mind for letting his guard down and thus causing his only bodyguard to become injured. So Chiui rested a hand on his shoulder, catching his attention.

"Ling, Lan Fan will be alright." Chiui gave him a reassuring smile. "You have faith in her, as I have faith in her as well. She will be better in no time." She then remembered Ling telling her a while ago about him and Ed being swallowed by Gluttony. "Hey. You and Ed were badly injured when you were in Gluttony's stomach, but you still made it and were healed in the end."

_Yes...but I was healed when Greed took over me before getting his memories of his friends back, and Ed and Al were healed by the Father. _he gritted his teeth when that name came through his mind, and exhaled to get away from the topic.

"So where are you planning to go?" The Xingese prince questioned her.

The redhead thought about that. "Well, there is a forest near Central city, which the end of it leads to an ancient city that is no longer in existence." Chiui replied. "It sounds interesting, since I've always had an interest in ancient cities, even if they're still here or not."

Ling seemed to like the idea, and grinned. "Alright, then!"

Chiui took his hand, which was outstretched, and they started making their way to the forest.

Chiui heard his stomach growl and exhaled in frustration.

"Sorry." he laughed nervously. "I forgot to get something to eat earlier."

Chiui gave him a reassuring smile, and told him it was alright.

"Well, uh, would you like to get something to eat before we go to the forest?" Chiui questioned him, and Ling responded with his usual grin when it came to food.

They had found a place to eat in Central, which served ramen. Chiui didn't mind, since she loved ramen. She only got two bowls, and almost fell out of her chair when she saw that Ling ordered six bowls of ramen. When he finished eating the ramen, she reminded him that it would cost them some money to pay the waiter. Ling only laughed nervously and crossed his fingers.

The two were now walking down the streets of Central, and were near the forest. Thankfully, this wasn't the same forest Chiui and Ling fought Pride in. This forest, when you met the end of it, collided with an ancient village, that was still thriving and changing as the years passed by.

Chiui remembered reading about the village in a book of her father's when she was younger. She forgot the name of it, but definitely remembered the beautiful scenery and the pleasant looks of it.

_...And as another relief, the village is not run by the military, like _this _one is. _She emphasized the word "this", since she was referring to Central. The redhead has a better understanding of the military, with them running Central...but she doesn't know the surprising truth behind it.

She was lost in thought that she didn't realize that Ling had suddenly went missing. Her golden eyes widened as she scanned the perimeter, and then groaned.

"Ling! Where did you go?" she called out, cupping her hands over the sides of her lips. She then blinked when she saw that the Xingese prince was in front of her, and running down the path, happy. He was almost at the village, and Chiui was trying her best to catch up with him.

"Come on, Chiui!" he waved to her. "If we don't hurry, the sun's going to be setting soon, and we won't get to meet the wonderful people that might be here!" he's heard of the village and the people here, too. "So run with me!"

Chiui didn't get the last part. "What?" she called out.

"I said...run with _MEEEEEEEEEEE_!" the last part of Ling's sentence came out in a yell as his foot caught the edge of the end of the path, and he went stumbling down. His yell was soon replaced with a "Wheee!"

Chiui couldn't help but chuckle at his clumsiness. _At least this is putting Ling in a good mood, since I know he's worried sick about Lan Fan. _Chiui thought.

She soon reached the end of the path, and made sure that she was being careful, but she ended up tumbling down as well, landing on the ground with her back side in the air.

Ling was already up from his fall, and saw Chiui's awkward landing. Chiui heard him start bursting out into laughter, and grumbled. "Well, at least I didn't land on my side like you did, Ling." she said as Ling helped her up.

The two then focused their attention on what was in front of them, and saw the village that they were talking about. It was more beautiful and peaceful-looking up close.

"Wow..." Chiui was in awe. She started making her way to the entrance to the village, with her Xingese boyfriend following behind her.

Right as the two entered the village, they saw a group of kids running towards them. The kids were giggling, happy. But one of them was curious, and could see the Flame Alchemist on Chiui's forehead.

"Hey, miss." the little boy spoke up, catching the redhead's attention, "Are you an alchemist?"

Chiui blinked in surprise, not expecting the kid to ask that question. "Oh. Yes, I am, little one. Why?"

The little kid looked down, and twiddled his thumbs. "Well, a long time ago, our villwage was demolished by weird creatures with red circles on their bodies. An alchemist with white hair, bangs similar to yours, and gwasses saved us all from it."

Chiui and Ling's eyes widened, since they both knew who the little boy was talking about. The two gave each other surprised looks.

"The guy he's talking about was my father, Samuel Minos!" Chiui whispered in a tone to where only Ling could hear.

"I know." Ling whispered in the same manner. "But your father's parents despised alchemy. So why would your father become an alchemist?"

"I think it's because he wanted to learn alchemy when he was around my age, but his parents thought of alchemy to be a sin." Chiui replied.

"What's wrong?" the little kid asked, and the two teens looked at him.

"Oh, nothing." Chiui smiled nervously. "It's just that...the alchemist you described...is, or was, my father."

The little boy and the rest of the kids in his group's eyes widened, and then became big in admiration.

"Wow!" The little boy exclaimed. "That's so cool!"

Chiui then heard some of the other kids in the group saying the same thing, one of them saying to themselves, "I wish that I would've met her father."

"Um, thanks." Chiui grinned, not knowing what else to say about that. She then thought of her mother, Rena Youngsen. "Say, kids. Was a young, Xingese woman with long red hair, and two metallic arms arrive with my father?"

The little kids thought about that, and nodded. But before they could say anything else, a grown woman and man came walking towards them.

Chiui assumed for them to be the kids' parents, and the parents were wondering where their kids went off to.

"Maxwell," the mother said to the little boy. "We've been looking for you and your sisters. Where have you been?"

"Oh, hey Mommy!" Maxwell gave her an innocent, yet adorable smile. "We've been talking to these two nice people here." he nodded over to Chiui and Ling. "The young lady said that the alwhemist that saved our villwage was her father!"

The mother gasped. "Is that so?" she looked at Chiui and Ling, and recognized the Flame Alchemist symbol on her forehead. The mother suddenly had a flashback, and remembered when Samuel and Rena came to the village, and Rena was pregnant. Chiui was still a baby in Rena's womb, and Yosung wasn't born yet.

"You...must be Samuel's daughter!" The mother guessed.

"How...how did you know?" Chiui questioned, stepping back an inch.

The mother didn't know how to explain it, since the day that Chiui's parents saved the village was only a few pieces in her mind.

"I'll tell her, Patricia." The husband, who they found out whose name was Roger, spoke up. He then walked towards the two teens, and his kids went over to their mother. "When Samuel, a good friend of mine from childhood, and his wife, Rena came here, Patricia could see that Rena was pregnant with a child, and that's why she had guessed that you are their daughter. Also, the white streaks at the end of your bangs gave it away."

Chiui looked up at her bangs, and pulled a strand of them to look. "Oh." She then put it back.

"So how did the village get demolished?" she spoke up, since she was wondering how that happened."

Roger looked nervous talking about it. His black hair, shaded some parts of his blue eyes, which were becoming glassy.

"It was...a rogue, Xingese alchemist." he finally said, and Ling gasped in horror.

Chiui gave him an astonished look as the Xingese prince stepped back.

"You...can't be serious." Ling's voice seemed terrified and shaky. "_He _demolished this peaceful village?!"

While the family understood Ling and nodded as an answer, Chiui didn't get it. She rested a palm on her forehead, before looking at Ling, with her hands out in a confused manner. "Ling, what in the world are you talking about?"

Ling gritted his teeth, and rested a hand on his forehead. "...It's a long story, Chiui. I'll have to explain it to you later on." He then got an idea.

"Hey. You don't mind if we stay here in the village for one day, or a few days, if needed?" he asked Roger, who looked shocked at his answer.

Roger seemed to hesitate, but nodded. "Yes, you can. But I have to see if the mayor here will let you and Samuel's daughter stay here." He then told Patricia to take the kids back to the house, and he went off to ask the mayor.

Once the family was out of their sight, Chiui raised an eyebrow at Ling.

"Ling, you usually tell people right away about important information, including when you told Cousin Roy and the others about Bradley being a Homunculus." Chiui told him, then tilted her head to the side. "...So why are you acting nervous?"

"I told you, Chiui," Ling replied, with his tone still shaken, "I'll tell you tonight. I'm pretty sure that this Xingese rogue alchemist will be back."

Chiui was still baffled, but nodded to let Ling know that she understood part of what he just said.

It was now evening, around 7:00 P.M. Roger had gotten permission from the mayor for Chiui and Ling to stay for a few days. However, since there wasn't any guest rooms for the two to stay in, Roger offered them a house across from them in the village that was already done with furniture and other items. He said that it's a house that nobody was bought yet, and was used for people that visited the village.

Chiui and Ling thanked him, and immediately sat down on the couch once they got inside the house.

The dark-haired Prince could see that his girlfriend was waiting for him to explain, so with an exhale, he started telling her.

"Alright." he began. "So 16 years ago, in 1900, there was this Xingese alchemist my father know back in training named Bai Lei. Bai was 13 then, and was born in 1887. His first name means 'born of purity', but it really didn't seem that his name matched his personality. In fact, the name was contrary to his personality, and he could tell right away. He didn't seem to listen much to the training instructions by our sensei, and seemed to be in his own world. He soon quit, and my father found out that he started learning alchemy from a different teacher somewhere else in Xing. Rumors went around once he mastered alchemy that he's planning to take over Xing and overthrow the empire, or that he's planning to slaughter innocent people because he's crazy in the head."

"Well, it seems that they were right about him being crazy in the head, but not about him wanting to overthrow your father." Chiui said, and Ling nodded before continuing.

"Well, I was like you 16 year ago, just a baby in my mother's womb. So I only heard of this story from my parents and private tutors as I grew up. It's always given me the creeps, so as I was training my dexterity martial arts over the years, I thought of facing him and ask him why he decided to do alchemy instead of our alkhestry. The teacher, as I found out from my father, was an Amestrian immigrant that came here to Xing to teach alchemy. But when I found out later today that he had indeed went rogue and demolished this village a long time ago, I knew that Bai is using his alchemy to his advantage."

"...I see." Chiui nodded, and sighed to let all of the information sink into her head. "Well, that's horrible that he went rogue. But the question is, why did he want to demolish this village? Was there a particular reason?"

The Xingese Prince shrugged, since he didn't know. "We'll have to find out that we encounter Bai—"

Suddenly, they heard an explosion outside that shook the ground. Chiui and Ling almost lost their balance.

Ling ran to the window and moved the curtains aside to see what happened. He gasped when he saw that there was a wave of ice that cut right through the water fountain that was in the middle of the village. The water had instantly become frozen when the ice made contact with it.

Ling muttered something that Chiui couldn't hear at first.

"Who's here, Ling?" she asked him, and he gave her a confident, yet scared expression.

"...He's here." Ling spoke more clearly. "Bai Lei is here!"


	12. The Rogue Xingese Alchemist's Revenge

Chiui and Ling saw another ice wave coming, but it was now towards them. Unfortunately, it broke the door, and froze some parts of the wooden floor.

"Whoa!" Chiui tried to catch her breath. "...That was close."

"I'd say." Ling replied. "If we hadn't dodged that, we would've already been dead!"

He and Chiui carefully stepped outside, dodging another one of Bai's ice attacks just in time. The two teens then came face to face with the rogue Xingese alchemist himself.

Bai Lei had dark hair like Ling's, but his was bob-cut. He had piercing, green eyes that sent shivers down the Xingese Prince and Flame Alchemist's spines. He had a scar going down the right side of his lips, and a painful-looking crescent scar on his forehead.

He was wearing black and red, similar to Ling's first outfit—which was yellow and white with flame patterns—but didn't show his torso, and was sleeveless. But the leather boots he was wearing were obviously Amestrian.

When the 29-year old man spotted the redhead and Xingese Prince, a cold smirk came across his lips. "Well, well," he added a laugh to his expression, "I didn't expect to see the female Flame Alchemist and her Xingese Prince here."

Chiui and Ling gasped in shock. Ling walked forward, sticking his hand out to protect Chiui. "How do you know who we are?" he asked, his tone raised.

"Glad you asked." Bai rested his fingers lightly on his chest to show his narcissistic personality. "I've been doing research on Amestrian, not to mention Xingese alchemists, and I so happened to come across you," he paused, pointing to Chiui, "and you, the 15th son of the Emperor of Xing."

"How?" Ling wanted to know. "How did you come across us in the research?!"

"Well, the military keeps tracks of the missions alchemists and their companions have been on, am I right?" Bai's question received no shock from Ling, but shock from Chiui. She didn't know that, and she's been in the military for a year now. "Well, Bradley, or should I say, Wrath, keeps tracks of everyone's missions...and so do his partners. He's been keeping a watchful eye on you two ever since the redhead here became a state alchemist. He's also been keeping a watchful eye on...y'know...the rebelled Homunculus."

_What?!_ Ling heard Greed say in his mind. _How does that brat know that?_

_He might probably have connections with the Homunculi, or just finds a clever way to get research for his plans. _Ling replied back. _He's trying to threaten both of us, including Chiui here._

_Well, that's crossing the line, isn't it? _Greed questioned. _You should know not to threaten women, because they can show you what they're made of. I've learned my lesson when I was fighting a female alchemist at Dragon's Nest, who happens to be that runt's teacher...or should I say happened to._

If Edward was here, and Greed was in control of Ling's body, he would've given Greed a series of punches in rage. But thankfully for Greed, the Fullmetal alchemist wasn't here.

_So what are we going to do now? _Greed questioned Ling when Ling saw that Bai was getting ready to attack, and wasn't in the mood for any more talking. _Bai is known as the Arctic Alchemist. If you have a sword with you, or try to block one of his attacks with your martial arts skills, you will most likely have your weapon broken or a part of your body frozen. It'll take a long time to break the ice from the frozen part of your body._

Ling thought on that for a moment. _Well, Greed, don't you have a power that breaks even rare metal that Bradley's swords are made of? _The Homunculus nodded in response. _Then it might be a good choice for you to fight this battle with that power._

Greed liked the idea, and the Xingese Prince take over him. Greed then activated his powers, and got ready to fight at Chiui's side.

Bai saw their determination, and grinned wickedly. He positioned his arm like an X, so that both of the arms crossed. He then waited for Chiui and Greed to charge at him, and he then sent the ice attacks at them. Greed saw it coming, and stood in front of the attacks. He blocked them with his arms, which reflected it back at the rogue Xingese alchemist.

Bai didn't see it coming, and got hit right in the chest by his own attacks. He was thrown back a bit, and fell to the ground.

"Whoa..." Chiui didn't know what to say when she witnessed what happened. "So he's vulnerable to his own attacks?"

"Seems so." Greed seemed a tad surprised by this. "It isn't really common, but if I keep on blocking his attacks, and the metal-like power I have keeps on reflecting them, he might as well be weak enough for us to defeat him."

"True." Chiui nodded. "But can't fire melt his attacks?"

"Yes, it can." Greed replied. "...But Bai's attacks are quick and fast. So you'll have to match the speed of his attacks, if you can do that."

The redhead seemed nervous, but knew that Roy taught her how to change the speed of her attacks when fighting enemies. It has helped Roy do that when he was fighting.

"...I can do that." Chiui gave Greed a reassuring smile, though she felt herself hesitate at first. That reassuring smile showed to Greed that the 16-year old trusted him, even though, last year, she was told to trust Greed off and on. She really didn't trust him, and was feeling weird right now for trusting him now.

"Okay." Greed broke her train of thoughts with a grin. He then turned his attention towards Bai, and so did Chiui. "Let's do this!"

The rogue alchemist could see them charging, and got ready to fight.

The fight turned out to be a blood-boiling melee. Greed was able to reflect most of the bob-cut man's attacks, but some managed to slice him on the face, causing cuts to bleed out. As the wounds automatically healed themselves, Chiui was trying her best to match Bai's speedy attacks to hers. It seemed to be working, and the redhead managed to get it a few hits, wounding Bai, who was distracted by the injuries.

Chiui saw this as an opportunity to finish him off, but she noticed that Bai was moving his hand—which wasn't the one covering the wound on his torso—in a circular motion. He then thrusted his arm out in a punching motion, and before Chiui could block it, or Greed could take the blow, Chiui was sent flying back far, and blood expelled from her mouth, and from her stomach, which was where the attack hit her directly at.

When she landed, she landed onto her side, and rolled a couple of feet. As the dust subsided, Greed could see that Chiui was badly injured, and was bleeding from her forehead. Her head had rubbed up against the hard, concrete ground. Her stomach was badly injured, and by the sound, it sounded like she broke a couple ribs.

"CHIUI!" Greed and Ling both called out. Bai then saw that the Homunculus was distracted now, and went to attack him, but Greed saw it just in time. This time, he swung his arm, and Bai's attack reflected right back at his chest.

Greed watched as the ice stabbed Bai right through the heart, and Bai choked. Blood started dripping down from his mouth, which was filling up with it as Bai fell down to his knees. The Xingese man started coughing up the same crimson liquid as he felt his life almost done draining out of him. And when it was done with its process, his head landed right onto the blood that he coughed up.

The rebelled Homunculus muttered an "Oops." before Ling took over him.

Ling saw Bai's body on the ground, and the dead Xingese alchemist's eyes still wide open. The pupils were enlarged, showing that he was gone for good.

Ling was distraught, since Greed accidentally killed him. But then, as he thought about it, Bai did deserve it for what he did. Bai didn't really show any acts of kindness.

He then focused his attention on Chiui, who was motionless, but not dead.

The Xingese Prince felt tears emerge in his eyes as he carefully picked up Chiui and carried her bridal style. He looked at her face as he started walking out of the village. Some of the villagers, including Roger and his family that Chiui and Ling met before, had witnessed what happened, and offered to help.

Roger informed Ling that he used to work as a doctor in Ishval for the wounded, healing the Ishvalans. He remembered seeing Winry's parents killed before his eyes. Ling accepted his offer, and Roger offered them a guest room in their house.

Once Chiui was rested on the bed, and band aids were put on her wounds, Roger gave Ling a chair to sit in so he could be next to her.

"If you need anything else, tell me." The dark-haired man informed the dark-haired teen, who nodded in response to his question. Roger nodded back as well, then waved to the two before closing the door behind him.

After a few minutes of silence had passed, Ling heard a faint groan. He looked and saw that Chiui had come to, and was taking a while to open her eyes. Once her eyes fully opened, and she could see Ling in the chair next to her bed. She looked around, making sure not turn her neck too far, since that would cause pressure on her injuries.

"...Ling, where are we?" she questioned him. "...And how long have I been unconscious?"

"We're in Roger's house. And you've been out for a couple hours." Ling estimated that answer, since it was close to two hours.

The redhead exhaled. "...Ah, I see." she then noticed that Ling took a hold of Chiui's hand, which was hanging over the bed. He squeezed it softly, and smiled reassuringly towards his girlfriend.

"But don't worry." he said. "You'll be alright."

Chiui smiled. "Thanks, Ling." she then exhaled again, and closed her eyes to get some rest. Besides her injuries, she was tired from fighting Bai Lei.

As Ling saw Chiui fall asleep, his mind went aside from the situation, thinking about Lan Fan.

_I wonder how Lan Fan is doing. It's been about a day since her injuries occurred. For an accurate update, she must be halfway done healing. _he then thought about what happened Bradley badly injured Lan Fan's arm, and Lan Fan had to cut it off, spending a few days with until she got an automail arm to replace the arm that used to be there.

_It only took her a while for her to heal and get an automail arm. _Ling continued. _So possibly by tomorrow or the day after that, she'll be fine. _he then looked at Chiui. ..._But I can't leave Chiui here. Lan Fan puts a lot of faith in her, and trusts Chiui to make sure that nothing bad happens to me. Also...if Chiui happens to die from her injuries, I won't be able to face Lan Fan and tell her the bad news._

Ling then caught himself thinking those negative thoughts, and punched the side of his head, hard. _...Wait. What am I saying?! Chiui...Chiui will be fine, and will make it out alright. Lan Fan will be alright, and will be relieved when Chiui and I make it back. ...Because Lan Fan must be worried sick about us._

He noticed that his hand was still on Chiui's outstretched hand, and squeezed it softly once more to reassure his positive mood, so nothing opposite of that will emerge into his mind.

The clicking of the door opening broke Ling's train of thoughts, and he saw that it was Roger's wife, Patricia. She had Maxwell and Robin, one of her daughters, with her.

"Hewwo, mistah." Robin spoke up, and Ling smiled. He thought it was cute how Robin said that.

"Hello." He then looked at Patricia. " , are you here to see how Chiui's doing?"

"Yes." Patricia nodded, parting her orange hair away from her honey-colored eyes. "But there is something that I discovered that might help this young lady heal faster."

"What is it...?" Ling's voice trailed off as his crimson eyes—due to Greed possessing him—locked on the bowl in Patricia's hands. He swore he saw a red light coming from the bowl, and once Patricia stepped closer, with her kids following her, Ling gasped.

It was the Philosopher's Stone!

Ling stood up immediately, releasing his hold on Chiui's hand. His sudden movement caused Patricia to step back a bit. "...W-Where in the world did you get that?" he asked, with his shaky hand pointing to the stone. "...And how?"

Patricia seemed confused. "I found this where the rogue alchemist's corpse was. It appeared that he had coughed up something that was giving him that ice power of his."

_Just like Kimblee did...he always kept the Philosopher's stone inside his body... _Ling thought, since he remembered Ed mentioning him before. Ling felt himself hesitate, since he knew what the Philosopher's Stone could do. He had to feel the pain of his body being destructed, then resurrected, by the stone. And he didn't want Chiui to feel the same pain.

_But Chiui is badly injured, and it will take her about a few weeks to fully heal. _Ling hated battling with himself. _But I told Roger that we will stay here for only a few days, and make our leave. And I want to keep that promise, since I don't want to anger the mayor by extending the stay. Roger has told me what the mayor is like. _He then swallowed down a lump that appeared in his throat, and looked at Patricia and her children. He then looked at Chiui.

"Alright." Ling went with it. "I'll let Chiui take it for her to heal quicker."

Patricia seemed satisfied by the Prince's choice, and offered for her to give Chiui the stone. Patricia put the stone to Chiui's lips, then carefully put it in there. The stone quickly slipped into Chiui's throat, and went down.

Patricia, Maxwell, Robin, and Ling waited patiently, not to mention with hope, that the results will come out alright.

They jumped when they saw Chiui's body start twitching around, then stop. They walked closer to her to see if the stone had worked, or it had downright killed her. But when they heard a loud cough, followed by a series of coughs, they saw that it had worked.

It seemed that the affect of the stone had tickled Chiui's throat a bit. But as she sat up in the bed, she looked at her body. The wound on her stomach was gone, and when she patted it, she noticed that her ribs were no longer broken. She then rubbed her forehead, and didn't see any blood on her hands when she looked at them.

"Whoa..." was all she could say at first. "What happened?"

Patricia couldn't help but speak out first. "Well, I found an amazing remedy that will help you heal faster!"

"It was the Phiwosopher's Stone, Mommy!" Maxwell and Robin told her, and Patricia had forgotten that in her excitement of the stone working.

Chiui almost felt sick to her stomach when the kids mentioned that. She couldn't believe it.

"How in the world did you find one?!" she was taken aback, not angry.

When Patricia explained it, Chiui understood. She knew that Kimblee had a similar technique like Bai did, which was what Ling thought as well.

She didn't want to show her hatred towards the stone, since she knew what Ling had told her when the Philosopher's Stone was put into his body, and what the stone is capable of doing. So she smiled warmly, and thanked the family.

Ling helped her from the bed carefully, even though Chiui's legs were a bit shaky. Patricia, Maxwell, and Robin walked with her to the living room, which was downstairs.

Roger saw the group appear as he was drinking his coffee and reading the newspaper. He almost dropped his coffee when he saw that Chiui was up and healed.

"What happened?" he asked his wife. "Why is she up already?"

"Oh." Patricia didn't expect that response from him. "...Well, I had found a Philosopher's Stone from the rogue alchemist's corpse, and proved to be a helpful remedy for the young lady."

Roger's eyes widened in horror, and then they relaxed. He looked at his kids, then his wife, and then at the two teens. The teens saw that it was time for them to leave, so they thanked the family for helping them.

Once Chiui and Ling left, they saw Roger asking his wife about the Philosopher's Stone. He sounded worried and confused of why, and Patricia tried her best to explain.

"Well, I think it might be time for us to leave, Chiui. "Ling told Chiui, who seemed shocked by his answer.

"Why? We haven't been here for a full day yet!" Chiui told him. "The mayor will be wondering why we're leaving."

Ling stopped in his tracks, causing Chiui to do the same as well. He hadn't considered that.

He told Chiui to wait a minute, and got Roger. The two then went to the mayor's house. Once they did so, Roger said his goodbyes to Ling, and Ling did the same. Roger didn't look angry at all, but seemed worried. _It must be about what Mrs. Holmes did..._Chiui thought.

She then saw Ling walking towards her. "The mayor seemed suspicious about Roger and I telling him that I had decided to have us leave now instead of staying here for a couple of days. But once we explained it again, he dismissed us."

"I see." Chiui replied, and the two made their way out of the village, and came face-to-face with the cliff they stumbled down on earlier that day.

"...So how are we going to get back up to the path we were on?" The redhead went to ask Ling, but gasped when he wrapped his arm around her waist carefully, and held onto her as he ran up the cliff. Once he jumped and landed onto the path, he put Chiui down.

Chiui was shaking, because she was looking down the whole time as Ling was taking them back to the path. Ling could see that, rested both of his hands on her shoulders. He shook her a bit to see if she would be alright, saying, "Hello? You okay?"

"I'm fine." Chiui grumbled, feeling more dizzy than she did before. "But that didn't really help."

Ling grinned apologetically, and the two started walking down the boulevard. Chiui yawned, and Ling noticed.

"Want to find a place to rest at?" Ling questioned, and Chiui nodded, smiling sleepily. Ling then chuckled. "I thought you had a lot of rest, though, when you were bedridden at Roger's house."

"Well, I didn't." Chiui told him. "But that Philosopher's Stone...why did Patricia put it in my mouth while I was asleep?"

Ling thought on that. "Well, she didn't want to wake you up when we were doing that. But I could see you barely open one of your eyes during the process. But...at least you're healed now."

The redhead noticed her boyfriend hold back for a moment. He looked perturbed when he was talking about the stone. Chiui could tell why, and with a reassuring smile, wrapped her arms around Ling's waist, resting her head against his arm. Ling felt a slight blush appear on his cheeks, and he smiled. He hugged Chiui back.

The two then decided on a place to go, and noticed that it would take a while to get out of the forest and back to Central. Ling and Chiui thought on what to use to make a little tent, and thankfully, they found some big leaves lying somewhere and some wood.

So Ling and Chiui got to work on the tent, and were finished in no time. They were now sitting in the tent. Chiui had her knees bent, and she had her arms wrapped around them, pulling them in towards her. Ling had his legs crossed, and was leaning back a bit. Him and his redheaded girlfriend were staring into the night sky.

"It sure is beautiful outside." Chiui exhaled dreamily. The Xingese Prince noticed the tone of her sigh, and smirked.

"It sure is." Ling scooted towards her a bit, which Chiui could see him doing out of the corner of her eye. "It is also romantic, don't you think?"

Chiui looked away for a moment, focusing her golden eyes on the ground. She smiled warmly, and a rosy pigment appeared on her cheeks. She went to say that she agreed, but she caught sight of Ling's arms behind his back. It seemed that he was unwrapping something.

She didn't realize that it was his ponytail before she saw his full hair fly out. Chiui's breath was taken away. She didn't expect him to have such long, silky, dark hair, which met at the middle part of his back.

Chiui noticed that she was going into her fangirl stage, which she only does when she's talking to Lan Fan about Ling. Thankfully, the stage was broken when Ling locked his crimson eyes on Chiui's golden eyes.

Ling smirked handsomely, causing Chiui's face to flush. "What? You haven't seen my hair down before?"

"I..." Chiui's voice almost cracked when she stammered, "I...I don't think so. But you look quite...how should I say this...? ...Hot. Eep!" she couldn't believe that she said that last word out loud, and she covered her face with her hands.

The Xingese Prince just laughed, and wrapped his arms around Chiui's waist, pulling her in towards him. She still had her face covered by her hands.

"It's alright." Ling smiled, and Chiui moved her hands away from her face, only for Ling to kiss her on the lips softly. Chiui blinked, and closed her eyes as well, putting her arms on his back. The two were like that for a few minutes before pulling back.

The two then gazed into each other's eyes before giving each other one quick kiss before going to sleep.


	13. The Impending Day (PART 1)

The next morning, it was sunny outside. There were no clouds present in the sky, and there were birds chirping happily in the trees.

Chiui and Ling were still asleep in their tent. Both had warm smiles on their faces as they layed there on their sides, with Ling hugging Chiui from behind. He had Chiui pulled in close to him, and had his head rested on her shoulder.

Chiui didn't notice this when she started to stir. She blinked a couple of times for her eyes to adjust to the sunlight and the bright sky.

She felt something that was around her waist, and looked down to see that it was Ling's arms, and that she was pulled in close to him while he was asleep.

Her cheeks flushed a rosy pigment. The pigment only spread to the rest of her skin when she heard Ling mumble something unexpected in his sleep.

"Huh?" Chiui looked at him, completely confused, yet blushing massively. She heard her name at towards the end of the mumbled sentence...and something about marriage and having twins.

Ling muttered it again without realizing it, and Chiui whacked him hard in the chest with her elbow.

"OW!" Ling immediately woke up, and rubbed his chest. "W-What was that for?!"

"Did you hear what you just mumbled, Ling?" Chiui asked him, her face fully red.

The Xingese Prince gave her a confused look. "What do you mean?"

Chiui told him what she heard, and Ling didn't seem surprised at all.

"Oh, that." Ling laughed. "I was just having a dream about a possible future...our future."

Now it was Chiui's turn to ask, "What do you mean?"

Ling rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "Well, you becoming the Empress of Xing, with me being the Emperor, and possibly...um.." he completely forgot what else he was going to say, which showed through his blank face.

"Ling, it sounds like you're proposing to me." Chiui told him, though she liked the idea of possibly becoming the Empress. "But we're only 16 now. We're too young to get married just yet."

"Oh, I know." The Xingese Prince grinned, and he didn't say anything else.

All of a sudden, they saw a small panda, about the size of a tennis ball, running past them. A young girl, in Xingese attire and braids in her hair, passed by the two teens. It seemed that she was trying to stop the panda.

"Mei?" Ling raised an eyebrow, and that stopped the black-haired child in their tracks. The girl turned around and looked at Ling, and her eyes widened.

"Ling Yao!" Mei grinned, and hugged the Xingese Prince. The panda stopped, and saw Mei. It hopped onto her shoulder.

Ling hugged Mei back. "What are you and Xiao Mei doing here?" he questioned her after they pulled back.

"Oh, I came across Edward when I came with and the others." Mei explained. "They told me where you guys went." She then looked at the village that Ling and Chiui were at yesterday. "It seems that Xiao Mei must've sensed something there, and ran off to find it."

"Well, there was something there." Chiui spoke up, catching the little girl's attention. "A rogue Xingese Alchemist named Bei Lei had come back to sabotage that village that he had completely destroyed 16 years ago."

"Oh." The little girl then shivered, since she has heard of Bai Lei before. She then saw Chiui's hair, inlcuding the white streaks in her bangs. The redhead have her a confused look until Mei's expression went from serious to surprise.

"You're...you're Rena's daughter." Mei spoke up.

"Yes, I am." Chiui didn't know what to say at first. "She and my grandmother were part of the Youngsen clan. Why, does your clan know them?"

"Knew them." Mei corrected her, "...But the Youngsen clan was one of the poor clans in Xing, but as the Emperor recognized Lan Fan's clan and helped them out, he saw potential in the Youngsen clan as well. So he helped them out with their daily needs and helped improve the health of the clan. Our Chang clan was still bad, but the Youngsen clan had helped us out once they got back on their feet. Your mother and your grandmother were one of the people that really helped."

Chiui looked surprised, but felt proud of what her mother and grandmother did for them. "Oh...thank you...?"

"Mei." Mei could tell that Chiui didn't know what her name was. "Mei Chang. Yours?"

Chiui thought that Mei know her name, since Mei knew her mother's name. She blinked. "Oh. Chiui, Chiui Youngsen. I'm a childhood friend of Ling Yao."

The dark-haired girl went to say, "Oh, I see." but then saw that Ling was holding hands with Chiui. She giggled.

"What?" Chiui looked confused, but then looked down to what Mei was giggling about. She looked at Ling.

Ling noticed Chiui blushing, and removed the hold. "Sorry." he laughed nervously." He then found his ponytail holder, and went to put up his hair in a ponytail.

"I should've known that Ling would choose someone from the Youngsen clan." Mei told Chiui. Chiui had a hand on her arm, rubbing it nervously, since she was a tad embarrassed of Ling holding her hand. "It seems that ever since he met you, that he's taken a liking to you."

"Yeah, it seems so..." Chiui blushed, and saw that Ling was putting his coat on. She hadn't realize that he took off his coat last night.

"Anyways, we should get going back." Ling told Chiui. While he was getting ready to go, he was thinking of this, " " Mei mentioned, and knew it sounded familiar.

Chiui nodded in agreement. Then, without any more dialogue, they made their way back to Central.

"So is there any news on Lan Fan?" Chiui asked Riza immediately as she, Ling, and Mei entered the building.

Riza was on her way to the Colonel's office with paperwork, so Chiui and Ling decided to go with her while Mei spotted Alphonse and Edward, and decided to say hello to them.

"Lan Fan is doing alright." Riza told them once she and the two teens entered Roy's office, and she handed Roy the paperwork. "The Doctor told us that her wounds are almost done healing."

Ling sighed in relief. "Well, that's good to know." Chiui smiled in the same manner, glad to know that her good friend was almost better.

Roy noticed Chiui and Ling. Roy greeted them, in which Chiui gave him a salute.

"So...are Bradley and Selim back yet?" The redhead questioned her cousin, who took a few minutes to respond back due to beginning to work on the first pile of paperwork.

The male Flame Alchemist shook his head. "No, which doesn't seem surprising to us."

"What do you mean that it 'doesn't seem surprising?' " Chiui raised an eyebrow. "Does this usually happen?"

Again, Roy shook his head. "No, but since our team, with Ling's help, have found out about Bradley's true self, and Selim's true self, we don't have to be shocked if he and Selim went somewhere to plan something."

"True." Riza nodded. "This could mean something that harms all of us here, including the innocent citizens in Amestris."

"And Xing, too, if the Great Awakening makes it that far." Ling added.

"But the Father won't get away with this." Roy told him and Chiui, who was completely confused...though she's read about the Great Awakening before.

A moment of silence came across the four. "Anyways, I'm glad to see that you and Ling have come back from the village, cousin." Roy told Chiui, breaking the silence.

"Thanks." Chiui bowed. "But...cousin Colonel, have you...ever heard of Bai Lei?"

Roy's eyes widened when Chiui mentioned his name, and looked up. "You came across him?!"

Chiui looked down at the floor. "Yes. Ling and I both did. Ling was telling me the story of him before Bai Lei came to sabotage the village once more."

"After letting Greed take over, Chiui and him became engaged in a fierce battle with Bai." Ling added. "Bai eventually died by one of his own attacks, but badly injured Chiui along the way."

Roy seemed relieved by Bai being dead, but looked concerned about Chiui being injured. Chiui gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, cousin. I'm fine."

"How?" Roy told her. "If you were badly injured, then you would've taken a long time to heal."

"I know, cousin." Chiui told him. "But and her husband had helped us out when we arrived to the village, and Mrs. Holmes...she found..."

Ling could see that Chiui was starting to hesitate, so he spoke up for her. "Mrs. Holmes found a Philospher's stone near Bai's corpse, so she used it to heal Chiui's wounds."

This caused Roy and Riza's eyes to widen in horror.

"Did this know what she was doing?" Roy asked Ling, and Ling shook his head.

"It doesn't seem so, but her husband definitely knew that it was a bad choice. You see, Roger had worked as a doctor in the war along with Winry's parents, and worked along a doctor named Marcoh. Roger had to see what the Philosopher's stone can do, and what...incredible power it has. But even though it managed to heal Chiui so she wouldn't have to bedridden...Roger still hates the stone, and can't believe that his own wife would use it."

"God knows what Bai used it for." Chiui spoke up, and rested a hand on her forehead. "I just hope the pieces of the Philosopher's stone inside of me won't affect me later on..."

"Well, I sure hope it doesn't." Roy said. "But I have to agree with Mr. Rogers on this. I don't understand why would think that the Philosopher's Stone could help. Was she a nurse during the war?"

Ling and Chiui shook their heads, but they didn't know for sure.

"Well, you two are dismissed." he told them, and smiled nervously out of stress. "I have a lot of paperwork to do."

"Alright, cousin." Chiui said, and as she and Ling went to go out the door, she looked over her shoulder. "Do you need any help with the paperwork?"

"No, but thank you." Roy smiled. "It's something that you won't be able to do...though you're two years away from an adult. Paperwork is...complicated." he couldn't think of any other words to describe it.

"Okay." Ling and Chiui both said at the same time, and then left the room to check on Lan Fan.

July 01, 1917

Not much happened during Chiui's 16th year. It was more missions to go on, and the orders to kill had risen since then. Chiui hated doing it, because she knew that the person could be innocent of their crimes, possibly framed by someone...or is guilty of their crimes. She knew that they didn't deserve to die by her hands...and it caused her a lot of stress.

Roy and the others could see it, and they felt bad for her. Chiui wore her hair down more often due to the stress, and often sat in her chair at work, with her head in her hands...pressing her thumbs into the skin between her golden eyes.

Lan Fan, on the better side of things, had already healed, and Chiui and Ling went to visit her after Roy had dismissed them. Lan Fan thanked the doctor for his care, and thanked Ling and Chiui.

Mei Chan, as Chiui found out, was in love with Alphonse, and she could clearly tell. Alphonse didn't really show it, though he could tell that Mei liked him. She used to have a crush on Edward, but got her heart broken when she found out what she really looked like.

_Yeah...finding out what they really look like can disappoint you. _she thought. _But the way that she fangirls over Alphonse reminded me of how I was before going out with Ling Yao._

Speaking of the little Xingese girl, she heard a knock at the door, and got up to open it. She was in her room, and it was her day off. She was in her casual clothing—the one with the dark, short-sleeved shirt, and the pants of her military uniform.

"Good morning!" Mei greeted her, and Chiui hugged her. Ever since Chiui had met Mei last year, Mei had become like a sister to her.

"Morning." Chiui smiled. "Why are you here so early?" It was only 9:00 in the morning.

Mei went to say that she and the others have a big surprise at the building, but knew that if she told Chiui, then the surprise would be ruined.

"Well, after you've eaten breakfast, come to the military building." Mei told her. "Something is going on over there."

"Oh?" Chiui blinked, rubbing her eyes. "Is something positive?" Chiui hoped so, because if it was something negative, then she will not like dealing with it or hearing about it on her day off from work.

Mei shook her head up and down, and then laughed. Xiao Mei did the same with her head. "Yes, it is something good. But don't worry, Chiui." she then went to leave. "Just remember to come to the building after you eat, 'kay?"

Chiui smiled. "Okay, I'll remember." She watched as Mei opened the door, closing it behind her as she left the apartment.

Chiui yawned, and decided to walk over to the dining room of Riza's apartment room. She saw that Riza was reading the newspaper, and drinking her coffee as usual.

Riza happened to notice that the now 17-year old girl was up, but still a little sleepy.

"Oh, you're awake." Riza smiled, though Chiui could tell that the blonde-haired 2nd Lieutenant was a little drowsy as well. "You usually sleep until 8:30."

"I know." Chiui took a second to stretch, causing the muscles in her body to loosen up and relax. "But today has been my first day off since—" she laughs, "God knows when. So I slept in an extra 30 minutes."

"Well, I wish that I could sleep in until then." Riza sighed, taking a sip of her coffee. "But I have work to go to, and besides, I'm used to getting up early in the mornings."

"True." Chiui agreed, and decided to get something quick to eat. She wasn't really hungry, so she found an apple in the fruit basket that was on the counter in the kitchen.

So while Riza was finishing off her coffee, Chiui ate the apple, thinking about the rest of the day is going to go. But what she was mostly thinking about was the "surprise" Mei was telling her about.

The redheaded 17-year old went to ask the blonde-haired woman about the surprise, but Riza then noticed that it was almost time to go. So with a swift movement, she got up from her chair, and Chiui did the same.

After Riza put her coffee cup in the sink, hoping to wash it later, she and Chiui made their way to the military building.

The minute Chiui and Riza stepped into the building, they were greeted by Roy and the others. Roy gave Riza a quick kiss on the lips before hugging his cousin, who was really confused.

"Why are you so happy, cousin?" Chiui gave him a raised eyebrow. "Also, why is everyone in such a good mood? She then saw Mei with Alphonse and Ed, and she was grinning.

"Oh, it's the 'surprise' I mentioned to you." The little Xingese girl spoke up.

Chiui didn't have to say anymore, since Roy told her to close her eyes. She did what she was told to do, but it only made her more bewildered than ever. So she let Roy lead her as the others followed.

A few minutes later, Roy told her and the others to come to a stop, and Roy then told his cousin to open her eyes. She opened her eyes, only for them to widen when she saw where she was.

It was Maria Ross's empty room, which became Chiui's office for her work last year. But there was a colorful banner on the ceiling, not to mention...chocolate cake sitting on a plate on her desk. Chiui almost drooled at seeing the cake, but wanted to look at the banner first.

It read:

_Happy 2 year Anniversary of being here, 2nd Lieutenant Chiui Youngsen! Also, happy 17th birthday! You're almost 18!_

_Sincerely, everybody (except Bradley and Selim)_

"Oh..." Chiui felt her golden eyes turn glassy as she rested her fingertips on her lips. She chuckled a bit at the end of the banner, since it excluded Bradley and Selim. She knew that those two were no good.

She then turned to the rest of the group, and thanked them, though her voice broke due to her happiness. Lan Fan gave her a hug, and Chiui smiled, hugging her back. Ling joined in the hug as well, kissing Chiui on the cheek.

Chiui smiled, and kissed him back on the cheek as well. Edward and the others just nodded and smiled, happy for Chiui. Oh, and once Ling and Lan Fan were finished hugging Chiui, Mei came running to Chiui, leaping into her arms. Chiui laughed, and hugged Mei before the Xingese girl hopped off, going back to where Alphonse and Ed were.

"Well, isn't it about time we celebrate?" Roy spoke up, and the others cheered. Armstrong flexed his muscles in his arms, causing his military shirt to come off. He had the usual sparkles next to his face.

Everyone became silent once that happened.

"...Does that...usually happen...?" Chiui questioned, her voice low. Even though she's known Major Armstrong for 2 years, she was still mortified by his random showing off of his muscles.

Roy and Riza nodded, and Edward did the same, with a disgusted look on his face.

Another moment of silence occurred.

"Alright! Let's dig into the cake." Roy told them, and the rest of the group went ahead and enjoyed themselves at the party.

Meanwhile, a woman with demonic skin—dark red skin— was making her way down the underground place of the Father. She wore a smirk on her face as her silk, long, black hair bounced as she walked. She wore a black sleeveless, armor, with a skirt in the same color, but not the same type of attire. On her arms and hands, she had dark armor on them, and the claws at the end of her fingers were long. She had armor that started at her knees, and ended at her feet. It seems to have rusted, since it was no longer its silver color, and was now brown...or has been brown for God knows how long.

Her piercing green eyes shone in the darkness.

"Oh, look who's back." Envy spoke up, turned to see the said woman entering the underground room.

"Akuma!" He smirked and walked over to her. "It's been so long since we've seen you."

Akuma chuckled. "Likewise. I have been...busy lately."

"Busy?" Envy questioned, resting his hands on his hips.

"Well, Envy should know." Akuma looked at him. Envy gave her a confused look until she went further. "You know Chiui, right? Well, I've been following her and her little friends that have been helping her on her missions ever since she joined the military. It seems that her grandmother had passed away two years ago when she was still trying to cope with her parents' death you perfectly planned those many years ago."

Envy slowly got an evil smirk on his face. "Oh, I know what you're talking about now!" he then laughed. "I'm surprised that that pathetic redhead doesn't recognize me ever since we've encountered each other off and on. But I do remember her seeing me disguised as her before that Xingese grandmother of hers came and rescued her."

He thought about the symbol on the ceiling that he saw as Chiui had went to escape from the fire that day before he continued. "...Oh, and that symbol on the ceiling of her parents' house...I can't believe that she could even survive that when it fell on her! The material that her father, Samuel, was using wasn't a simple writing tool, but it was burnt charcoal...which is sure to cause some pain to the person if it hits their back or the charcoal is put on their skin immediately."

"Well, Chiui, I have to admit, is a gifted person." Akuma spoke up. "She was able to survive the fire with her grandmother's help. I'm sure that her grandmother saw that the piece of the ceiling fell on her, and helped Chiui up, getting the piece of her...only to see that it severely burned Chiui's back." she chuckled when she described the details."

"And it will take a long time to heal." The Palm Tree spoke up. "But the scars caused from it will remind of her of that night."

"...And that is part of the plan." The black-haired demon and Envy said at the same time, laughing evilly.

"...Well, if it isn't the demon goddess."

Akuma turned to see who said that, and saw that it was the Father, who had just gotten up from his chair. He came walking over to her.

"Oh, hello, Father." Akuma smirked, and shook his hand. "It's nice to make your acquaintance again."

The Father didn't smile at all, but appreciate what Akuma said. "It's nice to make your acquaintance as well...Akuma."

The four stayed silent for a few minutes.

"So, when are we going to set out the plan?" Akuma asked him, putting a hand on her hips, and using the other to emphaize what she's saying. "We've been waiting 2 years to set this in action, and I want to see what impact it will have on Amestris."

The Father knew what she was referring to, and raised a hand up. "Don't worry. It will happen quite soon. We just need Bradley to order Chiui, Roy, Ed, Ling, Alphonse, and that female bodyguard of Ling's to his office. We'll need the doors closed so no one else can come in."

"Oooh...so Bradley is helping you at the beginning?" Akuma cooed. "I love that idea."

"Well, it seems to fit for the Impending Day." The Father emphasized the last two words.

Akuma and Envy let out a burst of wicked laughter, which took a while to fade out.

In the shadows, Vengeance was shaken at the idea. His blue eyes were glassy, and he clutched the chest of his jacket with his hands.

"No..." he muttered, his voice as shaken as his expression was. "This can't be happening...Sister..."


	14. The Impending Day (PART 2)

**WARNING: I've actually decided to merge all the fights with Bradley, Selim, Envy, the Father, and Akuma into this chapter. So be prepared for a very long chapter!**

Chiui and the others were in the office now, talking about what they're planning to do today. Havoc was busy working at his store a few miles away from Amestris in his hometown, but heard about Chiui's birthday. He congratulated it with a drink, so did Roy and Breda.

Riza and Chiui sighed. "Do they always do this whenever a happy celebration happens?" Chiui questioned, and Riza looked at her.

"Yes, unfortunately." Riza smiled. "But you have to know that they're adults, so they're allowed to drink."

"True." Chiui nodded. All of a sudden, they felt the ground rumble beneath them, and all of the people almost lost their balance. Roy and Breda almost dropped their bottles of booze on the floor, and caught it just in time.

"...What in the world was that?!" Ed spoke up, his voice sharp. Everyone looked around.

"It was just an earthquake." A voice spoke up, and everyone turned to see who it was.

It was Bradley, who seemed oddly calm about what just happened. He had his hands behind his back, and was looking straight at Chiui and the others.

Chiui felt chills run up her spine when she spotted Bradley. This was the first time she's ever come eye-to-eye with him...and knew that she was right about how she felt about him. Even though he seems that he's a good guy to everyone else, he really hides something more sinister behind that "good guy" act.

"Chiui. Ling. Lan Fan. Roy. Edward. Alphonse." When Bradley mentioned their names one by one, they felt scared. "...Come with me."

Chiui and the other mentioned people looked at each other in confusion, but did what Bradley told them to do. Once they entered his room, Bradley ordered for the doors to be locked.

Riza and the ones that weren't called came running to the door, trying to open it. Bradley heard the knocking at the doors, and ignored them. Chiui, Roy, Alphonse, and Edward were sitting at the table. Ling and Lan Fan were standing behind the chair Chiui was sitting in.

Ling knew that Greed was itching to possess him right now, since Greed knows that Bradley is here. Ling assured him not to, because it might make things complicated.

"Why did you tell us to come here?" Roy questioned, making sure his tone didn't sound suspicious. Bradley would think that Roy knows he's onto something. "Is there something that you need to tell us?"

"Why, yes." Bradley nodded, and set his teacup down on its plate. He then told Chiui, Roy, and Ed to stand up, and they did so.

"I've been wondering about Chiui." he told them, and his eyes were locked on Chiui's. She could feel her heart beat increasing by the second. "She's done such a good job on her missions, especially with those Xingese friends of hers."

Ling and Lan Fan stayed quiet.

"And since she's been on missions now that require killing people on the list, no matter if they're innocent or not, she's been more...stressed. But I'm sure that she knows that if she doesn't follow the orders to kill, then she'll be executed."

"I know that, sir." Chiui told him, catching herself when she almost forgot the word "sir". "But...I'm fine now. I'm less stressed than I was before, especially since today is my birthday. There is no need to be stressed on such a special day like this."

"Yes, yes." Bradley nodded, and put his hands together, folding them. He then rested them on his chin, thinking. Chiui could tell that he was thinking, though she didn't know what it was about just yet.

"You've...been thinking about your parents and their demise ever since you enlisted in the military. Have you not, Chiui?" Bradley questioned her, which made Chiui feel chills go up her spine.

"Yes, sir." Chiui nodded, though she seemed...baffled that Bradley didn't include Yosung. "But...my little brother, he died in the fire along with my parents. So why did you exclude him out of the statement?"

Bradley didn't answer her question; he stayed silent.

"Sir?" Chiui asked him, feeling her anger slowly boiling up inside of her. "Can you please tell me why you didn't include Yosung? He's dead!"

Bradley still didn't answer, no matter how many times Chiui kept on asking, which was three until he stood up.

"You're a rather persistent girl." he remarked, and Chiui flinched. "You keep on asking about your little brother, Yosung Youngsen. But the real truth is...he's not dead."

Everyone gasepd except for Bradley. All of them believed that Yosung was dead, and it threw them off when Bradley had told them the truth.

"You can't be serious, sir!" Roy spoke up. "In the research of that terrible fire, it clearly stated that there was a third body that was with the other two: Samuel Minos' and Rena Youngsen's. That can't be a lie that he's really alive!"

"It was a dummy." Bradley told him, straight out. Roy's dark eyes widened in shock.

It reminded the male Flame Alchemist of when he and Havoc made a dummy so Maria can escape and go with Fu to an unknown place across the desert.

_He couldn't have made the dummy the same way. _Roy pondered. _They don't have the necessary ingredients to make one. Unless-_

The Homunculus Fuhrer was one step ahead of him. "A real, living human was used for the dummy."

Everyone's silence at that didn't seem surprising to Bradley; he just put it aside with a slight shrug of the shoulders.

Chiui gritted her teeth, she was really starting to get ticked. All her life, she believed that Yosung was dead along with her parents. Now, finding out that a real, live human was burnt to death for no reason just to fool Chiui into thinking it was really Yosung...she has had enough.

Ling, Lan Fan, and Edward jumped when the redhead suddenly slammed her palm onto the table, causing a loud _SLAM! _to occur. A nerve was pulsing next to her right eye due to her anger. Her golden eyes, even though she didn't have her Flame alchemy active, were glowing with hatred.

"You lied!" she roared, and Bradley didn't flinch. Ling and the others were surprised at Chiui's sudden anger; this wasn't like her. "You and the rest of your military friends lied! You made us think that Yosung was dead. And now, finding out that is all a lie, I'm starting to think over what I'm really worth to to the military...if all there is lies heading beneath the surface."

She took a minute before she continued. "...I take those last words back. I have been suspicious of the military ever since I found out about you, Bradley...and who you really are!" she didn't want to reveal that Roy and Ed told her about Bradley and his real self, Wrath.

She suddenly became silent, which drew the tension to the edge. She could feel her stomach doing flips inside her body, and sweat running down her temples. Once she found what she was going to say, she looked up with full determination. "I'm resigning from the military, Bradley! And you can't make me change my mind! I haven't trusted the higher class of the military since the beginning, since it's almost obvious about their actions. They make me sick, and you make me sick. So to make it clear, I am completely fed up with the military, and I'm going to be relieved to resign."

Bradley, again, didn't seem shocked. Edward, Roy, Ling, and Lan Fan were, since they didn't know that Chiui had the guts to talk to Bradley like that. But then again, it might be just her fear talking for her.

"So you think it's really that easy, Chiui?" Bradley chuckled, causing Chiui to flinch. "Do you really think you can resign from the military, just like that?"

As he said this, he slowly took his swords from their hilts, and Chiui could see his Homunculus eye radiating.

"You'll be executed or court-martialed for this...or worse...be killed on the spot."

Chiui watched as Bradley took one step at a time, ready to charge at her.

Ling saw it coming, and quickly grabbed Chiui by the waist, pulling her back just in time when Bradley swung his sword at her. Chiui was relieved that the sword just about missed her neck.

All of a sudden, she, Ling, Lan Fan, Edward, Alphonse and Roy, were teleported along with Bradley to an unknown place.

Everyone scanned the perimeter around them, and it was Chiui that recognized it right away.

It was her hometown, Ryoku, the place that she grew up at. She saw pieces of a house in the corner of her eyes, and a sharp gasp escaped her throat.

It was _her _house, which was already burnt to the ground. She could see that the bodies of her parents weren't still there. They might've been buried alongside the burnt house, but she couldn't tell. She felt tears welling up in her eyes.

Ling saw her, and saw that she was on her knees when she spotted her house, so he helped her up, hugging her tight. Chiui hugged him back, still crying. He wiped the tears away from her eyes, and glared at Bradley. Lan Fan looked at Bradley in the same manner, since she didn't like seeing people cry when they notice something horrible from their past.

"Is this all part of your plan, Bradley?" Ling yelled towards Bradley. "Is this just to make Chiui think over what she said to you?!"

Bradley shook his head. "This is only part of the plan, and it is not to make Chiui cower in the corner and still exist as a 2nd Lieutenant of the military."

"What do you mean, 'part of the...'?" Lan Fan went to say, but her eyes slowly widened as she looked up above Bradley. A figure that looked like an ancient priest and a demon goddess with jet black hair came into view and joined Bradley. Selim and the Palm Tree soon joined them.

Chiui's golden eyes made contact with Envy's lavender eyes, and Envy's eyes did the same.

"Well, well, we meet again, Flame Alchemist." Envy smirked and chuckled. "Didn't expect you and your fellow Xingese friends to be here."

A spear slowly slipped out of Lan Fan's sleeve of her bodyguard uniform. Ling got out his sword when he removed one of his arms from his hold on Chiui. His sword was wrapped up, but as he held Chiui closer to him with his other hand on her back, the bandages that were on the sword slowly came off, drifting to the ground.

Envy looked around, since the place didn't look familiar to him at first. But right when he saw Chiui's burnt house, he let out a loud, yet annoying laugh.

"Oh, so you guys were sent here?" he smiled evilly after his laughter finally ceased. "That is beautiful, Akuma!"

Chiui went to ask who Akuma was, but it seems that she answered her own question. The said demon goddess walked up to Envy, standing beside him.

"Well, it's what the Father wanted." Akuma chuckled, and glanced at Edward and Alphonse. She then looked at Roy, who she recognized.

"If it isn't the female Flame Alchemist's cousin." she spoke up, surprising Roy.

"How do you know who I am?" he questioned her, not knowing who in the world she was.

"Well, you were one of the military members that was assigned to kill my minions that I let the Homunculi torture." Akuma chuckled, for she didn't have a care in the world for her own kind that she made her servants. "Chiui here was one of the military members assigned as well."

The last sentence made Chiui think about one of the very first missions she went as a Major of the military. She and Ling remembered encountering those demons with the Homunculi marks on them, and how one of them badly injured Greed when he was in control of the Xingese Prince's body.

She winced, because she knew that by Akuma's cold tone when she brought the subject up, that she didn't care about her own kind, the kind she was born into. _This woman is just as sick and twisted like the other bunch..._she felt disgusted.

She then saw that Akuma had stepped back, and was whispering something in Envy's ear. Chiui and the others were confused of what was going on until Envy gave Akuma a smirk, and nodded. Bradley joined Envy, who Akuma told them to deal with Chiui, Ling, and Lan Fan. Akuma and the Father went over to where Roy, Edward, and Alphonse were. Selim decided to stay behind the other villians just in case they needed some backup. He then turned into his real self, Pride, while waiting.

The villians waited a few minutes to attack, and then the battle began. It turned more into a blood-boiling melee, with Ling and Chiui focusing on Bradley, while Lan Fan dealt with Envy. She was curious of why Envy wasn't shape-shifting like he usually did, since he's transformed into her before without her consent.

_He might try to use it at the last minute..._she thought as she pulled out a bomb, snapping the rope at the top off with her teeth. _I will need to make sure I don't let my guard down-_

Just as she said that, and went to throw the bomb, Envy smirked, and shape-shifted. She watched in horror as he slowly morphed into Fu, her grandfather.

Her eyes widened, and she froze, which was what she hoping not to do.

_Dang it...!_

Ling saw it coming a mile away, and rushed out for a moment, since Envy was about to stab Lan Fan in her arm, the one that wasn't made of automail. When he got her away from Envy, Lan Fan dropped her bomb.

When the bomb made contact with the ground, it exploded into a bright light, blinding Envy. He transformed back into his regular form, and growled.

"Stupid humans!" he yelled. He then saw that Lan Fan was back on Ling's side, helping him as he charged Bradley. Chiui was busy fighting Bradley, and really wasn't having any luck whatsoever. She was having trouble keeping up with the Fuhrer's swift movements of his swords.

_Just keep in mind, Chiui,_ she started to think as she dodged Bradley's sword attack, _concentrate on the speed of the movements of the opponent. That'll help you match your speed to theirs, and help improve your coordination. _

She remembered learning this from Roy on the 2nd week of her training. So she concentrated on Bradley's swords, seeing how fast they went. Doing so made her able to dodge most of his attacks, and block the ones that concentrated on the arms...though she suffered a few cuts doing so. Thankfully, they didn't bleed out, but the skin around the cuts bruised easily.

Ling came out of nowhere, and Bradley happened to see him out of the corner of his eye. He swung the sword at Ling's chest, and Greed took over Ling's body just in time. The metallic-like substance emerged on Greed's skin, which broke the sword in half...making it unable to be used anymore.

Bradley gritted his teeth, and threw the sword to the side. He then got into a small melee with Greed until his other sword was unable to be used as well.

"Caught you off guard, didn't I, Wrath?" The rebelled Homunculus laughed, and said, "Whoa!" when he saw something fly out of nowhere. He dodged it just in time, and saw it stab Bradley right in the eye with the Homunculus symbol on it. Blood spurted out of his eye, and the remains of it stained that part of his face.

He growled, putting his hand on his eye. The woman that threw the spear happened to glance at Chiui and Ling, and nodded.

"Don't worry!" she told them. "I'll deal with this guy here. You two deal with that Palm Tree!"

"Hey!" they heard Envy shout when he heard the woman call him that. As the woman went for Bradley and started fighting him, Envy saw it as his chance to attack Chiui and Ling.

Chiui saw it coming, since the mysterious woman told her ahead of time. Before Envy knew it, a fireball exploded in his face, followed by another one. He managed to land on his feet, though he had a hand resting where his eyes were.

"Damn it!" he growled. "That hurt!"

He then noticed Chiui's angered look.

"Oh, what's making you so angry?" Envy said in a cooing tone, making Chiui annoyed.

Chiui's eyebrow twitched. "Well, we've encountered each other a lot of times, and you've gotten more annoying by the minute." she said coldly, adding, "Also, I've been itching to kill you."

When Envy heard the word "kill", he started busting out in villanious laughter. The laughter broke down into short laughs as he rested a hand on his head, and his other hand on his stomach.

Chiui and Ling were thrown off by his laughter. The battle seemed to cease between the three, even though it was still going on around them.

"Why the hell are you laughing?!" Ling spoke up. "What's so funny?"

"Well, when the redheaded brat mentioned the word 'kill', it reminded me of something...wonderful."

The two teens gave him widened eyes and confused looks. "What do you mean by 'wonderful'?" Chiui questioned, but that only made the Palm Tree's smile grow bigger.

"Oh, you don't know?" Envy shrugged. "I thought you knew this entire time ever since we...met...dare I say—17 years, perhaps?"

Chiui's eyes widened in horror and shook. Chiui felt flashbacks of that horrible day come back, when she thought that she saw someone...exactly like her, but with glowing, lavender eyes. Once Chiui realized it, she was...horrified. She started crying. Ling noticed it, and hugged her tight, moving one of his arms up her back to comfort her, resting his head gently on her right shoulder.

He then looked up, glaring at Envy. "You...you scoundrel! How could you bring that up? Chiui doesn't like to think about that part in her past. So why would you..." he gasped when it hit him.

"No...it can't be!" Chiui and Ling exclaimed at the same time.

Envy let out an evil laugh, his lavender eyes widening with madness. He then shape-shifted into Chiui's little kid form, with the same look on his face.

Chiui gasped, her body shaking. She still couldn't believe that Envy was the killer, not to mention that he used her form to kill her parents. "No...no...you can't be! You're..."

"The killer of your parents?" Envy finished the sentence off, then laughed. "Hah! Of course I was, and oh, it was beautiful!" he started chuckling, rest his hands on his face, his widened, excited eyes peeking in between them. "It was beautiful to hear their screams as the fire hit their house, and burnt them to a crisp! It was lovely." his face went from flat out crazy to angry as he pointed at Chiui. "But you..._you _were supposed to die with them. But somehow...you survived, and it's all thanks to your flame alchemy and your grandmother. "

"What...?" Chiui didn't understand what she meant by that, but then noticed that she's immune to fire when Roy was helping to train her when she first enlisted in the military.

She then thought of Rai. "Well, my grandmother did the right thing to save me...but she realized...that it was too late to save my parents."

"Yes, she did." Envy said, then thought about the marking on the ceiling that was in Chiui's house a long time ago. He smirked as he thought about it. "Oh, and are you wondering where those scars on your back came from?"

Chiui felt her heart beat increase. "No...but I had a feeling that they were on the roof before the fire had happened—"

"Yes, they were." Envy nodded, and raised up a finger. "But, you thought that themarks that your father was forced to put on the ceiling were made out of pencil, right?" Chiui shook her head, since that is what she thought it was.

"Well, it was actually burnt charcoal!" Envy laughed, and Chiui gasped.

The flashback was clear now...Chiui could've sworn that she saw somebody with Bradley, who handed over the piece of charcoal to Chiui's father, who told them that he didn't want to do this, that he didn't want to cause harm to his wife and his children. But Bradley had threatened him, and Samuel had to go ahead and do it. Then, a few hours later, the fire happened, and that is when the piece of the roof fell and slammed Chiui on the back when she was trying to get away from the fire. She saw her parents' corpses, with both of them shocked. They didn't know that was going to happen. Bradley was already gone, but Envy...who Chiui knows now that he's the killer...stayed there in Chiui's form, and chuckled, soon disappearing.

Ling noticed that Chiui's expression was slowly changing as she remembered this completely, and vividly. Once the flashback was over, Chiui got an unfamiliar look on her face. Her eyes were widened with anger, and were radiating with power. She had her fists clenched, with the nerves pulsing with the same expression. Ling noticed that she had a rather dark look on her face.

"Uh...Chiui?" Ling questioned her, and was quite worried. "Are you alright?"

Lan Fan saw the look on Chiui's face, and her eyes widened. She was with Ling and Chiui when the mysterious woman ordered them to fight Envy, but Envy's explanation had postponed the battle.

Chiui gritted her teeth, and snapped her fingers with both of her hands. They both sparked, and caused huge flames to come out. Ling and Lan Fan jumped and stepped back. Envy went back to his normal form, and stepped back.

_That look..._Envy was surprised. _That's the same face that Colonel had on when he found out that I had killed Hughes..._he gasped. _This is not good! _

He started to run away, but screamed in agony when he felt two flame attacks hit him directly on the back, wounding him badly. He fell to his knees, and tried to regenerate, but the attacks kept on coming. He felt the fire hit him like fireworks, exploding with power. He manged to turn around, and got hit in the face by another attack. He then saw Chiui's angered face.

"You...you are going to pay for what you did!" she yelled. "You don't deserve to get away for killing my parents, and I should've known from the start that you killed them!" she sent another attack as she said this. "Bradley's going to get the same thing that he deserves!"

"Why do you think that brat even—GAH!" The Palm Tree felt two fire attacks hit him at the same time, and he noticed that he couldn't regenerate anymore. He was too beaten up and battered to heal.

With his good eye that wasn't damaged by the fire, he noticed that Roy had joined Chiui, and they were sending the flame attacks one by one.

The two cousins looked at each other, and nodded. Envy noticed what they were about to do, and his eye widened in horror. He then closed his eyes, feeling tears emerge in his eyes, and run down from his face. A weak smile then came across his lips as Roy and Chiui charged up the flame attacks, then snapped their fingers as they sent the trail towards Envy's chest, causing the fire to explode dramatically. Envy screamed as he felt his life drain out of him, and then he dissolved into the air as the fire subsided.

After Envy died, Chiui's face went back to normal and she realized what she just did. She fell to her knees and tears start to run down her face. Ling and Lan Fan ran to her, and Ling got on his knees as well, resting one hand on her arm, and the other on her shoulder.

Ling and his bodyguard knew why Chiui was crying, and it was because of her killing someone...but this time it was an Homunculus.

"There's no need to cry, Chiui." Lan Fan reassured her. "Envy had revealed that he was your parents' killer, and by killing Envy, you avenged your parents."

"I know." Chiui told her. "But...something doesn't...feel right in this. Envy...was crying before Roy and I killed him. It seemed that he was happy to die, which was very unusual...but..."

A sudden scream stopped Chiui's lament, and she, Ling, and Lan Fan turned to see who it was. To their surprise, it was the Homunculus from last year, but with his hood off this time.

The Homunculus had sent a surprise attack at the Father, behind his back, but he failed. The Father just sent him back in a house, behind the burnt one, and he fell to the ground, motionless...which meant that the attack the Father sent was quite powerful.

Akuma saw the Homunculus, and gritted her teeth, blocking Ed and Al's attack as she did so. "That Homunculus...I knew he was up to no good." she looked at the Father, and when they made eye contact, Akuma nodded over to the fallen Homunculus.

The Father saw him, and his eyes widened. "That brother of Chiui's has convinced Vengance to rebel against us?" his eyes then went back to normal. "I should've known..."

He saw Edward and Alphonse clap their hands, slamming them onto the ground, sending a powerful rift of alchemy at the two villains. The Father blocked it, and so did Akuma. Akuma sent an attack back at them, in which the two brothers guarded, but almost sent them back into a wall. They moved away just in time before they could get crushed to pieces. They noticed the Father sent an attack towards them, and they dodged it.

Greed had seemed to awaken all of a sudden, and took over Ling. Chiui and Lan Fan noticed that.

"Wait!" Chiui yelled to him. "Where are you going, Greed?"

"To help that Homunculus over there that got knocked out!" Greed told her, then looked ahead of him. "He looks familiar..."

As he ran to the Homunculus, he noticed a body on the ground, with two swords stabbed into his chest. It wasn't Envy's, since Envy died into thin air...but Bradley's. His arms weren't cut off, but the stab to the heart with two swords seemed to kill him instantly. Bradley's hair was grey, and not the natural black color that it was all this time. Also, the former Fuhrer seemed to be...relieved, glad that he was killed.

Greed just gritted his teeth and kept going. He then noticed a fetus on the ground...and stopped in his tracks. He definitely knew it was Selim...but didn't know that this was his true form. It seemed that Selim must've been distracted by the attacks being sent, and that Edward had finished him off, using his cloak to keep the fetus warm.

Greed looked at the fetus, then at the knocked-out Homunculus just an inch away from him. He picked up the fetus first, and gave it to Chiui, who was surprised. "I'll explain later!" he told her and Lan Fan, then went to get the knocked out Homunculus.

The Homunculus started to stir, and noticed that he was being carried over the shoulder. "W...What happened?" he asked, and Greed looked at him.

"You were knocked out by Father's attack, Vengeance." Greed told him. "But don't worry, you're okay now."

Once he got back to Chiui, the fetus, and Lan Fan, he stopped. He then put Vengeance down carefully, and immediately fell to his knees to regain himself.

Greed then approached Chiui, who was still wondering about the fetus in Ed's cloak.

"That...is Selim." He told the redhead, and both her and Lan Fan gasped in shock.

"That can't be right!" Lan Fan exclaimed. "Pride...he was just a little kid as a Homunculus. How can his true form...be this?" she motioned her hands towards the fetus.

"I...don't know." Greed told them. "But Ling suspected that the true form of this Homunculus was pretty young, and was being controlled by a body older than his...which was a little kid. We'll have to find a way to get this to the Fuhrer's wife."

"The Fuhrer's wife?" Chiui questioned, feeling a bit suspicious. "Is she a Homunculus, too?"

Greed shook his head. "No. Bradley's wife is a normal woman, who unfortunately, had to witness what happened. But I'm sure she'll be surprised to hear about this as well and—"

He felt a sudden shock go through his body, and he screamed in pain. Vengeance stood up with a jolt, and went to help Greed, but felt the same pain as well.

"Greed! Vengeance!" Chiui and Lan Fan both called out, and Chiui gasped when she saw who had stabbed Greed and Vengeance with their hands. It was Akuma, and she had used some type of power, stabbing Greed in the stomach, and Vengance in the chest. She was chuckling evilly.

Chiui looked over her shoulder, and saw the Father's motionless body on the floor, soon dissolving into a small, dark ball, which soon collapsed into itself, forever gone.

"What did you do?!" she yelled at Akuma, and went to help the two Homunculi, but she ended up getting shocked, and sent back. She landed on her back pretty hard, and Lan Fan quickly helped her up.

"Chiui, don't do that again!" The two heard a demand from Edward as he and Alphonse came over to their side. "It's too dangerous!"

Chiui understood that now. "But why? What is this...this demon thing doing?"

"She's...taking the Philosopher's Stone out of their bodies, completely destroying the Homunculi."

Chiui gasped, and watched as there was a sudden flash of light, and Vengeance and Ling fell to the ground, motionless. Chiui ran over to Vengeance and got on her knees, lifting him up, resting him on her lap. Lan Fan ran over to her Prince, and went with the same method.

"My Lord!" she called to him, hoping that he would come to soon. "My Lord, are you and the young man alright?!"

She heard a cough come from her Prince, which meant he just regained consciousness. "W-We're fine, Lan Fan...thank you." he gave her a warm smile, though his eyebrows showed a different expression. He seemed...sad about something, and Lan Fan guessed what it was.

"Greed's dead...isn't he, my Lord?" she questioned him. Ling nodded, and felt tears emerge from his eyes, and run down his face. Greed was his soulmate, the only one that he can relate to when it came to greed itself and power. Greed had become a good friend to him later on, and couldn't believe that the rebelled Homunculus was dead again a second time...but he was gone forever now.

The two Xingese teenagers then heard a groan come from the former Homunculus as he rubbed his head.

"Geez...this is the second time that I've been knocked out..." he sighed, and his eyes opened. When he locked them on Chiui, Chiui's golden eyes were widened with surprise.

"Chiui?" his blue eyes widened, surprised to see her.

"Y-Yosung?" Chiui didn't know what to think. "Little brother...you were Vengeance this entire time?!"

Yosung fell silent, not knowing how to explain this to his older sister. "...Yes, I was, Sis. I was the one that let our cousin, Roy, go, since I didn't want to see him tortured by the Homunculi, and—"

A small gasp came from him when the redhead suddenly embraced him, with tears running from her eyes. Except...the tears seemed to be cheerful tears, despite the eyebrows being arched down in a sorrowful manner.

"I...I should've known, little brother..." Chiui spoke up, choking a bit on her words, tightening her hold on Yosung. "But it doesn't matter now! You're...you're back!" she laughed out of joy.

Yosung felt tears emerge from his blue eyes, and laughed in the same manner. He hugged Chiui back. Ling and Lan Fan watched the sibilings' reunion with each other, and saw that it was touching...even though Lan Fan looked a tad shy when her dark eyes locked on Yosung.

"What seems to be the problem, Lan Fan?" Ling questioned her, and Lan Fan blinked. She didn't realize that she was staring off into space.

"Oh, sorry, my Lord." she blushed out of embarrassment. "It's just that...Chiui's younger brother...is quite handsome..."

She heard a chuckle from him, added by a knowing smirk. She gave him a confused look. "What's so funny?" she asked him, quickly adding "my Lord" to the end of her question.

"Oh, well, I think it's quite cute that you've taken a liking to him, Lan Fan." Ling told her, looking at her, then looking at Yosung. "It seems that he might be your type."

"What do you mean?"

"...Yosung is strong and caring, as shown through his attacks that he attempted to send at the Father. Also, he's very shy, and I've known that since I met him and Chiui 12 years ago." he sighed. "Anyways, speaking of the Father, where is that demon goddess?"

He, Lan Fan, Chiui, Yosung, and the others shielded their eyes when a sudden explosion occurred, letting off a bright, white light. Once it subsided, they saw Akuma's corpse in the grass, soon dissovling into the air. A golden spirit seemed to emerge from it once the corpse disappeared.

The mysterious woman from before looked beaten up and bloody the last time Chiui and the others saw her. She must've put her attention on Akuma after defeating Bradley.

"Kenna...?" The golden spirit called her name, and the now named woman looked up at her with her red eyes.

"Yes, Akira?" Kenna questioned her, looking relieved to see her.

"I just wanted to say, thank you..." Akira told her as the spirit smiled, and faded away. Kenna's eyes widened, and she felt tears run down her face. They came down uncontrollably, as she fell to her knees, covering her face with her hands.

Chiui and the others quickly came over, but Alphonse beat them to it. He rested his armored hand on Kenna's shoulder, and she looked up at him.

"What happened?" Alphonse asked her, not knowing who Akira or Akuma was.

"Akira...a beloved cousin of mine that had her soul corrupted by Akuma...she died by me using up the rest of my powers...I wasn't paying attention..." The rose-haired woman broke out into sobs after she finished her explanation.

She then noticed Chiui standing before her, and quickly stood up.

"It's alright to let your sorrow out." Chiui reassured her. "I've had to do that whenever I had to kill people on missions for the military. But since Bradley, Selim, and the Homunculi are gone now, I can get help from Roy and his team to resign. And it's all thanks to you, Mrs...?"

"Kenna." Kenna kindly smiled. "Just call me Kenna." She then extended her hand out to Chiui, who gladly took it, shaking it.

"So why did you come here, Kenna?" Chiui questioned her. "Was it because of that demon goddess?"

Kenna nodded. "I was in my realm when I got message from this realm...for which I don't know how, but I found out that Akuma was planning to destroy the whole world, not how the Father was planning to do so by just demolishing Amestris. She's had plans of enslaving an entire country for her uses, but failed. So she took it a step further to try to wipe the Earth from existence...but she didn't get to do it this time, since she's finally gone and Akira's finally saved."

she let out a sigh to give herself some air.

"Well, we might meet again sometime." Chiui told her, and the others nodded. "You...were a great help."

"Thank you." The rose-haired woman laughed, and started to turn blue. She noticed that it was time for her to return back to her realm, so she said her goodbyes to them. She then disappeared into thin air.

Once she left, the group was teleported back to Central, where they were back in Bradley's room, and the doors were unlocked. They looked around, confused, until they saw Riza came running towards Roy and Chiui, hugging them both. She then gave the others a relieved smile, happy to see that they made it out okay.

Denny and Maria approached, since they were outside when this happened, and weren't able to get into the building. Chiui only heard of them from previous missions, when Maria went off to the grid to Xerxes. Chiui thought she was dead, due to what she heard from Armstrong, but was glad to see that she was back.

Ed and Alphonse saw them, and came walking over to them. "2nd Lieutenant Maria Ross! Sergeant Denny Brosh!" he exclaimed. "Where have you guys been?"

The dirty blonde-haired man and the dark-haired woman laughed nervously, explaining where they were. Denny then hugged Maria, making it awkward around the others. Maria pushed him off with a smile.

"Sorry, he's still happy to see me, that's all." she concluded the conversation at that. She then saw the wounds on the group, and with help from Armstrong and the others to help them out.

Everyone was glad that the Impending Day was finally over, and so were Chiui and Yosung.


	15. Until We Meet Again!

Chiui, Ling, Lan Fan, Roy, Ed and Alphonse got their injuries treated by the Briggs doctor that came with Olivier Armstrong, Alex Armstrong's older sister. She seemed to have gotten word of what happened from her brother and came over. She was now the head of the Armstrong Mansion after she and Alex had a quarrel, letting their parents and three younger sisters go on a vacation...but they don't know for how long yet.

Alphonse, somehow managed to get his body back after the battle, and Ed didn't seem surprised. He guessed it must've been from after Akuma died, and the Father died, that everything was turned back to normal. He thought he was going to visit the Portal of Truth to get his brother's body back, and to get his arm and leg back. _It must've some type of strange power that the demon goddess used...God knows what it was..._Edward sighed.

Chiui and Ling were sitting somewhere in the room they were being treated at, and the bandaids being put on them were almost done.

Ling looked at his Xingese-Amestrian girlfriend, and Chiui looked at him. He rested a hand on her shoulder, and gave her a kiss on the lips. Chiui kissed him back, giggling after they pulled back.

"Can you two get a room, please?" they heard Ed say, only causing Chiui and Ling to laugh. Ed didn't see what was funny, except the joke was on him.

The redhead and the dark-haired Prince then heard conversation going on, and saw that it was Yosung and Lan Fan. They seemed to be getting along really well, and Yosung was blushing out of embarrassment. Lan Fan was doing the same, but it was more over the two holding hands, which made Chiui grin.

"Oh, wow." she remarked."Seems that it didn't take long for them to get together."

"True." Ling agreed.

Chiui remained silent for a moment as she looked at her little brother. She found out that he was now 15. "I can't believe that he's taller than me now, considering that I was taller than him when we were kids." she seemed a bit annoyed.

"Well, he must've had a growth spurt when he was a Homunculus." Ling laughed, and Chiui elbowed him on the arm. "OW! What was that for?"

"Well, he might've had a growth spurt before then." Chiui told him. "My father had expected for him to become taller than me one day."

"I see." Ling nodded, though he wondered if Chiui knew that he was joking. It seemed that she did, but she took the "growth spurt" part seriously.

"So what are you guys going to do now?" Roy questioned his cousin, Ling, and Lan Fan as they stood in his office along with Edward and Alphonse.

The six of them were done healing and had the band aids off of them. Chiui was in a different casual outfit this time, which consisted of a white shirt, black pants, flat black shoes, and a light chocolate jacket. Ling seemed to be wearing similar attire, except his coat was black. The outfit he was wearing before had been worn out, from the battle, also since a hole was put through it when Akuma killed Greed.

Chiui focused her golden eyes on her military uniform, which she had in her arms. She had her black, short sleeved shirt on top of it.

"Alphonse and I are going to go visit Winry." Edward told Roy. "As for Chiui, Ling, and Lan Fan, we don't know where they're going."

The golden-haired former alchemist and his brother-which was now clothed with shorter hair-noticed Chiui's silence, and wondered what was wrong.

"Is something the matter, cousin?" The Flame Alchemist questioned, walking from behind the desk to the redhead. Once he was standing in front of her, she looked up at him.

"Well, Ling, Lan Fan, and I have decided to go to Xing, since I've...always loved that place since I was younger, cousin..." she paused for a moment. "But what do I do about this, my miltary uniform? Should I keep it, despite what's happened?"

Roy noticed that this was a tough decision for Chiui. "Well, you decide." he told her with a smile. "If you plan to throw it away, then do so. If not, then you're allowed to keep it."

Chiui looked down at her uniform once more, and had decided to throw it away, since she didn't want to think of the Homunculi, Bradley, and Pride anymore. And speaking of Selim, he's with the former Fuhrer's wife, who is still in shock about what happened.

But Chiui stopped for a moment, and remembered the good memories that she had while she was in the military, about celebrating her birthdays: 16th and 17th. They were always fun. Also, Ling and Lan Fan assisting her on her missions was always great. And when she started to go on missions that required the orders to kill, her cousin Roy and her friends were always there to cheer him up.

Roy noticed a tear run down Chiui's face as she smiled.

"I'm...going to keep this, cousin Roy." she said. "I can't bear losing the good memories that I've had with you guys."

The dark-haired Colonel knew what she meant by that, and smiled. "Good. At least you're going to keep it for those memories, and not the bad ones that we've had to face, cousin." He then rested a hand on his cousin's shoulder, and then hugged her tight.

Chiui smiled, and hugged him in return. She then looked around. "Say, where is the rest of your team, Roy?"

"Oh, Riza's busy doing paperwork." he started to explain. "Fuery's busy feeding Black Hayate, Breda's taking some time off, and Denny and Maria are...who knows where. Probably on a date." he shrugged the last sentence off, and sighed. "Olivier is back at Briggs with the doctor, and Armstrong is taking some time off as well. He and his sister deserved it after what happened."

Chiui and the others understood, since Riza explained to Roy when the group got back about what happened while they were gone. The military of Central had turned against them, or at least the ones that were on the Fuhrer's side. Mustang's team managed to sidetrack them when the Briggs Soldiers appeared, and defeated them, thanks to Buccaneer.

"Alright." Ed sighed, and him and Al started making their way out the office, waving goodbye to Roy.

Roy nodded to them as a goodbye, and Ed closed the door behind him and his brother as they left the group.

Chiui, Ling, Lan Fan, and Yosung looked at Roy, smiling.

"Well, if there isn't anything else for you to talk to us about, cousin, then we'll be on our way." Chiui grinned as she took Ling's hand, and Yosung took Lan Fan's.

The four turned around and started making their way to the door, but Roy stopped them for a moment.

"You mentioned that you and the others are going to Xing, am I right?" The Colonel questioned, and the four of them nodded. "Well, Xing is a long way to go from here. Do you need anything packed, like food or clothing?"

Ling and Lan Fan glanced at each other, and shook their hands. "We'll be alright, Colonel." Lan Fan reassured him. "All four of us will be taking the train back to Xing."

Roy blinked, dumbfounded, not knowing that there was a train that went from Central to Xing. He then raised one of his hands up to dismiss them.

"Alright! Have fun in Xing!"

Chiui smiled, and she saluted her cousin. Roy saluted her back. Chiui knew that this was the last salute she did, since she is offically resigned from the military, and a lot of weight has been lifted off of her shoulders.

The four made their way out of the building, saying their goodbyes to Riza and the others as they did so. They then got to the train station, and boarded onto it once their train came.

As they found seats to sit in, in which Chiui and Ling were sitting across from each other, and Lan Fan and Yosung were sitting across from each other, Chiui looked out the window.

She sighed. "...Until we meet again." She was referring to Roy and the others as she said this. She then stayed silent for most of the train ride as they went back to Xing.

Yosung must've fallen asleep on the train, because Chiui was nudging him to wake up. The dark-haired teen yawned, and rubbed his eyes. He then realized that he was drooling, and quickly wiped it off.

"Are we at Xing already?" he asked his older sister, and Chiui replied with a "Yes", smiling.

"We've been on the train for four hours." Chiui reminded him, aside from arriving in Xing. "I guess that you must've been tired from all that had happened."

"True." And with that, Chiui helped Yosung up, and they exited the train with Ling and Lan Fan.

The four of them shielded their eyes from the sunlight as they set foot into Xing. They were immediately greeted by villagers, who were happy to see Ling and Lan Fan. They didn't know who Chiui and Yosung were until Ling told them.

They then noticed somebody emerging from the crowd, and Ling noticed it to be his father. His father was being assisted by Ling's mother, since the Emepror was having trouble walking.

"Father! Mother!" Ling walked over to them, and so did Lan Fan. "What are you doing out here? Father needs his rest."

"I know, Ling." his mother smiled, "But your father wanted to come and reunite with you and Lan Fan after you two went off to find out about immortality."

"...In which I failed finding, Mother." Ling confessed. "I wasn't able to save Mei's clan, since a demon goddess had directly taken away the Philosopher's stone inside of me and the one out of Yosung over there." When he nodded over to Yosung and his older sister, Chiui, his mother's eyes widened, for she recognized them. "But I'm sure Mei's clan will be alright, and that in the future, we'll find a way to help their clan."

"Well, that's really sweet of you, son." The Emperor spoke up, smiling weakly, with his voice being of the same manner.

He then saw Chiui and Yosung. "Well, I'll be. Chiui and her brother have grown up, haven't they?"

"Yes, Father." Ling smiled, and walked over to Chiui, taking her hand. He then took her over to his father and mother. "Also, while we were on our journey, we came across Chiui and Yosung. It's a long story, but Chiui and I got together. Yosung and Lan Fan have just gotten together."

"Well, good for you." The Empress and her husband were proud to hear about this. "Chiui would make a good Empress if she marries you."

Chiui felt her face flush, and hid it with her hands. Ling saw it, and laughed, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Oh, I'm sure she will, mother. I'm sure she will."

"Anyways, we need to get heading back to the empire." The Emperor spoke up. "If you four are hungry, then you're allowed to come in and stay for dinner."

"Oh, thank you!" Chiui's eyes beamed, and so did Yosung's. Yosung's stomach growled after she said that, and he blushed in embarrassment. Chiui giggled.

After dinner, Chiui was in her room in the empire, enjoying the view from the window. She found out that she, Lan Fan, and Yosung, were reserved rooms in the empire, and were allowed to stay as long as they liked, as long as they followed the rules of the empire. Chiui was relieved to hear that, but then realized about her stay in Riza's apartment. She knew that she made enough money to get her own home when it came to that, but forgot. She ended up giving it to Riza as a thank you for all that she and the others did for her.

Setting that aside, Chiui decided to get ready for bed, since she was quite tired.

So after she did so, she went fast asleep.

**Sorry that this is a short chapter to you guys, but I'm planning to work on Chapter 16 tommorow, and I'm happy that I'm (almost) done with Flaming Minds!**

**SPOILERS (kind of): Chiui will be turning 18 in chapter 17, after explaining what kind of job Chiui gets before turning that age in chapter 16. Ling will also propose to her at the end of chapter 17, and more will be explained in Chapter 18. So stay tuned!**


	16. An Unexpected Turn

Chiui woke up the next morning, refreshed and happy. She was glad to be back in Xing with Ling, Lan Fan, and Yosung, since Xing has always felt like a second home to her, even since her parents died in the fire 9 years ago.

Her train of thoughts were interrupted when she went to get up and ran right into Lan Fan. The two women startled each other. "Oh, I'm sorry, Chiui." Lan Fan apologized.

"No, it's alright, Lan Fan." Chiui smiled reassuringly. "Anyways, what are you doing here?"

Her boyfriend's bodyguard became silent, her face changing to a grave one.

"Lan Fan, is everything alright?" Chiui asked, and Lan Fan shook her head.

"No, Chiui..." Lan Fan felt tears emerge from her eyes as she started explaining, "but, the Emperor...he recently...passed away this morning..."

The room became dead silent afterwards, only to be broken by the dark-haired woman's sobs. The redhead's face went from confusion to horror. Tears started to run down her face as well, but slowly, as she covered her mouth in shock.

"No!" The 17-year old exclaimed. "You can't be serious, Lan Fan! I thought the Emperor was fine yesterday—"

"He wasn't, Chiui. He has been ill for quite some time now, and it has finally taken its toll on him." she then wiped the tears from her eyes, and rested a hand on Chiui's back, using the other hand to open the door. "Come. Ling, Yosung, and the Empress are waiting for us to join them."

And with that, the two women left Chiui's room. Chiui was silent the whole time she and Lan Fan walked down the hallway to the cemetery. Chiui couldn't believe what she had just found out from Lan Fan.

_I...I thought that the Emperor would live a few more years...not die suddenly from an illness he's had for a long time..._Chiui thought to herself, with her voice being shaken inside her head. _This...is unbelievable...it's...unexpected..._

When Lan Fan and Chiui turned a corner, signaling the end of the hallway, they went a few more steps until they came to the cemetery outside. They saw sakura trees outside, with the leaves falling off towards the Emperor's grave. Some of the leaves flew off into the bright, clear sky.

Ling, Yosung, and the Empress, who were in tears, noticed Chiui and Lan Fan, and waited until the two women joined them.

"Sorry, you three." Chiui apologized. "I just got word of this..."

"Tragedy." The Empress finished the sentence for her, then smiled morosely. "I should apologize for not letting you know until now."

Everybody then became silent as they looked at the Emperor's grave. Chiui saw that it was decorated with gold and flowers, and had the years 1870-1917 on them. Chiui's eyes widened; The Emperor was only 47 years old.

"He was young..." Chiui spoke up with a grief-stricken tone, catching the others' attention.

"He was, sis." Yosung agreed. "He didn't deserve to get an illness, only to die from it years later."

Silence then came over the group as they continued looking at the grave.

Yosung and Chiui then noticed that the villagers from Xing that they met yesterday were coming to the cemetery, since they just got the news from one of Yao Empire messengers.

Some of them started singing to devote the Emperor's life, which only seemed to make the Empress sadder. Ling rested a hand on his mother's shoulder. The Empress noticed her son's caring expression, and hugged him. Ling smiled sadly, hugging her back. He rested his forehead on her shoulder, and started crying, with the tears running down his face.

Everybody ate in silence during breakfast. They had just got back to the empire after seeing the Emperor's grave. The five of them didn't want to think about it, since it had struck them all as unexpected, and thinking about it would make things worse.

"So, will you be alright on your own, your Majesty?" Chiui questioned the Empress, who looked up at her.

"Oh, I'll be fine...Chiui." The Empress smiled, swallowing a piece of her food.

"Are you sure, your Majesty?" Chiui questioned after finishing off the rest of her good. "I...I can get a job to help you, Ling, and Lan Fan around her."

Everyone looked at her, shocked. This wasn't the reaction Chiui anticipated, so she was confused.

"What?" she raised an eyebrow, confused. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Oh, no, no." Ling gave his girlfriend a reassuring smile. "It's just that...that was nice of you to offer, but as my mother said, she'll be fine."

"Well, what happens if something goes wrong with the money in the Empire, or there is a sudden robbery that is out of the blue?" Chiui considered. "If so, I think getting a job around here might help the Empress, and also when you become Emperor, Ling."

When Ling heard her say "Emperor", he knew that she didn't know what he was thinking about right now. He then set his mind back to what Chiui said before that.

"Well..." he looked at his mother to see if she was fine with that. His mother thought on that. When he got a nod from her, he smiled. "Okay! But what kind of job are you planning to get around here, Chiui? I can show you around Xing and see what jobs there are to offer."

Chiui thought on that. "I haven't decided yet." she quickly took that back. "W-ell, I've actually been thinking of becoming a part-time alchemy teacher here for kids. I don't know alkahestry, which is the Xingese term of alchemy...but I think that there might be an Amestrian immigrant here that knows alchemy."

"Oh, nice." Yosung was impressed, and so was Lan Fan.

"But what type of alchemy will you be teaching, Chiui?" Lan Fan added with a question.

"Flame alchemy, of course." Chiui grinned, though she felt nervous replying to that straight out. "...But I have my alchemy done pat and have mastered it, so it'll be safe around the kids. Don't worry."

"Alright." Ling spoke up, and stood up. He offered to take the others' dishes, since they were already done. "After I'm done with the dishes, I'll show you around. How's that?"

"Good." Chiui smiled, then realized that she was still in her purple nightgown. She blushed out of embarrassment, even though she quickly grabbed a coat before visiting the cemetery. "First, I need to get into my clothes."

And with that, she went into her room to get dressed. Ling was already dressed in his clothes, so he waited at the door after taking care of the dishes.

When he saw Chiui coming towards the door in her casual clothing from yesterday, he smiled, and opened the door for her. "Ladies first."

Chiui giggled. "Thank you, kind Lord." She and Ling then made their way to Xing.

The villagers had gone back to their regular routine after the funeral, and there were kids everywhere, trying to catch up with their parents.

Chiui sighed happily when she saw them. "They sure are cute, aren't they?" The redhead asked Ling, which caught his attention.

"Oh, yes." Ling smiled, looking at a kid passing by them. "They sure are."

He had tightened his hold on Chiui's hand, since the two have been holding hands since their journey for Chiui's job. Chiui gasped, feeling her cheeks flush.

The two remained quiet until they found a school, which was fortunately, just a 2 miles away from the empire.

" '_Alchemy/ Alkahestry School for Everyone: Sign Up Today! _' " Chiui read out loud to herself and Ling. "Hm. Seems nice."

The two then went in, and immediately ran into an alkahestry teacher.

"Hello, young Lord Ling. Hello, m'am." he greeted them, and Ling bowed. Chiui curtsied. "What bring you two here?"

"Oh, I would like to get a job here as an alchemy teacher." Chiui spoke up. "Do you know where I can find an alchemy teacher around here?"

The alkahestry teacher's eyes brightened. "Ah, an alchemy teacher, eh? Well, our founder happens to be one herself, so follow me."

Ling and Chiui followed him, and eventually met Tina Fernandez. She seemed to be Xingese-Amestrian like Chiui is, but her Xingese side showed more than her Amestrian side.

_Oh wow..._Chiui thought, then shook her head to get her head out of the clouds.

"Sorry. The alkahestry teacher said that you're the founder of this school and also an alchemy teacher, right?" Chiui asked her, and Tina nodded.

"Yes, I am, m'am." she replied. "I'm assuming that you're a Flame Alchemist, and want to become an alchemy teacher."

"How did you know...?" Chiui went to say, but saw that Tina recognized the Flame Alchemist symbol on her forehead. "Oh."

"You must be Roy's sister, am I right?" Tina guessed, and Chiui gave her a confused look.

"No, I am his cousin."

Tina blinked, then laughed surprisingly. "Oh, I'm sorry, then!" her laughter subsided. "I just thought that you two were siblings because you're both Flame Alchemists. Roy's Xingese, and I can see that you're a mix of Xingese and Amestrian blood."

Now it was Chiui's turn to blink, but hers was of shock. "My cousin's...Xingese?"

When she got a nod from Tina, she was still surprised. "Well, this is quite surprising."

"Anyways, how long are you going to be working here?" Tina clapped her hands, making Ling and Chiui jump. Chiui then thought on that.

"I will work here as long as I make enough money to help out my boyfriend's mother, the Empress of Xing." Chiui explained to the dark-haired teacher. "Something tragic happened to the Emperor, and I am worried that money might be a problem for the Empress since the Emperor is gone now."

The Xingese-Amestrian teacher was sad to hear about the news. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. But thank you for explaining." she then smiled, and finished writing down what Chiui just said. The 17-year old teen didn't realize that Tina was writing that down the whole time.

"Alrighty then. You're hired!" she stuck out her hand towards Chiui, and Chiui smiled, putting her hand in Tina's, shaking it.

"You'll need to go through training before you officially become an alchemy teacher." Tina reminded Chiui, "But it'll be about how to keep the kids and teens under control if they become belligerent. The adults will be fine, unless they start misbehaving as well." Tina laughed nervously. "We've...encountered that problem before."

Ling and Chiui didn't say anything at first. "...Okay then." Chiui broke the silence, and went with Tina to do some training." she looked over her shoulder at Ling, and ran over to hug him as a thank you. Ling smiled, hugging her back, then let her go to see Tina about her new job.

He then thought about his mother, the Empress. He knew that when he had talked to her on the phone one time in Amestris, after finding out that his father had fallen ill, that his mother was planning to retire somewhere, since she didn't want to stay in the empire until her death. She knew that if she would stay in the empire, that she would feel the grief of not being able to help her husband in time, and that she would end up growing depressed, even though the villagers and the rest of the lower class clans in Xing knew her to be kind-spirited and optimistic.

"I hope Mother accepts the money Chiui will give her when Chiui is working part-time at this job." Ling said to himself. "Mother really deserves it for all she and Father have done over the years he has reigned Xing." When the words "reigned Xing" crossed his mind, his brain switched over to Chiui.

He snapped his fingers. "That reminds me. Uh..." he almost lost track due to the sudden nervousness he was feeling. But he soon got his voice back.

"Before I become Emperor later on, there's something that I need to ask...of Chiui...but it's going to take a year or so to confess..."

**First off, I apologize if this chapter was short. I'm planning to work on chapter 17 either later today or tommorow, if I have time. As I mentioned before in chapter 15, a lot of big events are going to happen, and I kind of spoiled it for chapter 17. Anyways, stay tuned!**

**UPDATE: Actually, the proposal and wedding will be merged together in chapter 17**.


	17. The Proposal

Chiui couldn't believe that it was already her 18th year, which meant that she, Ling and Lan Fan were the same age as well. So many things had happened during Chiui's 17th year after her resigning from the military. Roy was now Fuhrer, Ed proposed to Winry, Al got together with Mei—which Chiui thought was really cute—and most of all, Riza got to marry Roy, so that was good.

Getting to Chiui's job at the Alchemy/Alkhestry Academy, it has been going really well. The kids and teens really love her, and have learned a lot from her flame alchemy. She learned from some of the parents that the kids look up to her, and want to be like her and the other teachers, and she felt honored.

She gave thanks to her cousin, Roy, since he had helped her a lot on her alchemy. Ed and Al helped as well when there was rain, so Chiui knew a little bit of the alchemy the two Elric brothers knew.

Lan Fan and Yosung have been spending a lot of time together, and Ling and Chiui like the idea of her brother and Ling's bodyguard getting together. Even though Chiui supported Ling and Lan Fan dating before the two found out that by Xingese law that a Prince and his bodyguard can't marry, Chiui preferred Yosung and Lan Fan being together. Lan Fan and Yosung seemed to share a lot in common, especially with their strong hearts, skills, and shyness.

To get to the devestating news, the school Chiui worked out for the past year has been running low on its bills. Because of that, the students, teens, and parents that usually came, couldn't come. Chiui realized this when she went to work early Friday morning.

"What seems to be the problem, Tina?" The redhead asked before she saw the Xingese-Amestrian teacher's distraught expression.

"I haven't been able to pay my bills, Chiui." she told her. "You see, I've been so busy with this school lately, and I thank you and the other employees for helping me out." she took a minute to look at the long list of money she has to pay, then looked up at Chiui. "But...it seems that...I'll have to shut this place down..."

Chiui gasped; she didn't want this to happen. She loved this place, she really did! She didn't want the place to shut down at all.

"Chiui..." Tina suddenly spoke up, breaking the silence. "There's something I need to give you, as a gift."

The 18-year old went to ask, "What is it?" when Tina suddenly gave her a large stack of money. It was quite heavy, and it took a while for Chiui to keep a hold on it.

"W...What is all this?" Chiui questioned her. 'You're giving all of your money to me—"

"No, I'm not." Tina interrupted. "I've...already given some of it to the other employees. But...you can keep the amount I gave you, Chiui."

Chiui didn't know what to do with this large amount of money. She knew that Ling's mother, the former Empress of Xing, has just retired, and will need some help with money issues, if she runs into those.

Chiui went into thought for a moment. She then locked her golden eyes on Tina's blue eyes.

"Thanks...Tina. But, you know what? You can keep the first half of the $50,000 dollars."

Tina gasped. "You...you can't be serious, Chiui. I want you to keep it, since you and the others have done such a great job of helping me out. Also, I am past my retiring age, Chiui. I'm 78. I will be fine without—"

"No, you won't be fine without money, Tina!" Chiui exclaimed. She paused before continuing. "Listen. You're a kind, generous woman, Tina. But living without money means you won't be able to afford your own food, and you won't be able to afford a decent house to retire to. So, please accept these 25,000 dollars."

Tina fell silent, and sighed. She took the $25,000 from Chiui, and gave the redhead a relieved look.

"Thank you so much...Chiui..." The 78-year old woman felt tears emerge in her eyes, and Chiui put down her half of the money and hugged the older woman.

Tina hugged her back, and smiled. "But...I have been planning to shut this company down if it ever come to this...and it seems that it has for this 100-year old school I inherited from my grandmother..."

She then decided not to be on that subject anymore. She got up, and Chiui helped her out.

"Come on. I'll help you find a nice home to retire to." Chiui offered, and Tina smiled warmly, added by a nod.

And with that, they left the school.

Later, in the afternoon, Ling was sitting on the top of a hill in one of the parks in Xing, staring into the orange sky. The sakura tree leaves were floating elegantly into the air as he was deep in thought.

He rubbed the back of his neck with his palm, nervously. He had something behind his back in his other hand, of which he was waiting a little longer to hold on to.

"I...I can't believe I'm doing this." Ling said to himself with anxiousness in his voice. "...I've only known Chiui for...12 years, which is quite a long time. Should I do this? Or should I just wait until—?"

"Ling?" The Xingese Prince heard his name, and turned around to see where that feminine voice came from.

It was Chiui. She had just come back from helping Tina with her retirement.

"Oh, hey, Chiui." Ling greeted his girlfriend with a grin, trying to hide his nervousness. Chiui spotted it right away.

"Are you alright, Ling?" The redhead asked him, concerned. "Lan Fan said that you went somewhere without stating a reason."

"Oh, that." Ling laughed. "Well...I've been acting...rather strange lately, so I thought coming here would settle my mind down. Sorry if my behavior lately has bothered you."

"It...hasn't". Chiui admitted, making Ling's eyes widen.

Silence emerged between the two, and they stared into the sky.

"It sure is a beautiful day outside, isn't it?" Chiui sighed happily.

"There's no disagreeing on that." Ling exhaled in the same manner.

Silence then emerged between them once more. After a while had passed, Ling glanced over at Chiui with a smirk.

Chiui gave him a confused look, until she saw him get down on one knee. Her golden eyes widened.

"Chiui...I've had this on my mind ever since we arrived in Xing. ...We've...been going out for three years, and have liked each other since childhood. I remembered when I first confessed my love to you, that you're a really beautiful woman. I will always think of you as that, since I love you very much."

He then took a minute to take out what was behind his back, and revealed a small box. He opened it, revealing a golden ring with a crimson stone on it.

Chiui gasped in shock, and covered her mouth with her hands.

"The reason I've been acting so strangely is because of this...Chiui. I didn't know when there was a good time to say this...but..." he paused for a moment. "Will you...marry me?"

Chiui felt tears well up her eyes, making her golden eyes glassy. Her cheeks flushed a rose pigment.

"Yes, Ling!" she exclaimed. "Yes, I will!"

Ling got up, and Chiui hugged him tight. Ling smiled, hugging her back. He then put the ring on Chiui's ring finger, and Chiui watched as the stone on the ring shone brightly due to the sunlight.

"I'm...so happy to hear that." Ling smiled, kissing her passionately on the lips. Chiui closed her eyes, wrapping her arms around his neck. Ling rested his hands on her waist. The two stayed like that for a while until pulling back.

"Say, Ling." Chiui spoke up, looking at the stone on the ring. "Don't tell me...is this a real Philosopher's Stone...?"

"Nope." Ling smiled, knowing his new fiancee would ask that. "It's...just a regular crimson stone...it's in memory of Greed."

"I...see." Chiui smiled warmily, knowing that was sweet of Ling.

"Anyways, let's get back to the empire and tell the others the good news." Ling smiled, taking Chiui's hand. "Mother will be happy to hear it."

—-2 years later—

Feburary 20th, 1920

It was the day of Chiui and Ling's wedding. Ling and Chiui have been waiting for this moment, and Chiui couldn't wait.

She was in a Xingese wedding dress, admiring it in the mirror. As she twirled around one last time, she noticed Winry, Lan Fan, and Mei at the door.

"Oh, gosh." Chiui blinked, and laughed. "Didn't see you there."

The other three girls giggled. Lan Fan walked over to Chiui, resting a hand on Chiui's bare shoulder. Chiui's wedding dress was sleeveless.

"Well, I have to admit that you look quite beautiful in a wedding dress...my Majesty." Lan Fan was trying to get used to saying that now, since Chiui would soon become Empress. "Also, we're proud of you marrying the young Lord, about to become Emperor of Xing. He's always liked you, and it shows through you two making a new bond together."

"True." Chiui agreed, and hugged Lan Fan. The dark-haired woman hugged her in return.

"We would love to escort you to where Ling is now." Winry spoke up. "But..we know that your father is..."

Silence occured.

"Yes, he's dead." Chiui nodded, not wanting to cry right now. Winry understood.

"Anyways, let's get going." Mei spoke up. "I think it's time."

The four women made their way down the hallway, and down the alley. Mei quickly put the veil over Chiui's face as they did so.

Ling was in a tuxedo, and so were Roy and Ed. Riza was waiting for the other four women, and happened to see them coming. Everybody turned to see the four of them as they approached the main part of the alley.

Ling saw Chiui coming, and sharply gasped.

Chiui, with her hair down, looked absolutely beautiful, especially with her warm smile.

Ling smiled warmly as well, and waited for Chiui to come stand in front of him. Mei, Lan Fan, and Winry got in their positions with Riza.

The preacher saw that Chiui was there with Ling, and started in the book.

It took a while, and after the two said their "I do." 's, the preacher adjusted his glasses, smiling.

"You may now kiss the bride."

Everybody cheered as Ling and Chiui kissed. They then pulled back, and celebrated the wedding with cake.

The now Emperor and Empress were in the previous Emperor's room. Ling had carried Ling bridal style to the room, and Chiui felt embarrassed. Also, this was the first time Chiui has shared a bed with Ling, and she wasn't used to it yet.

She had just gotten into her purple nightgown, which had lacy straps and a zipper in the back. She had it zipped up for now, since she was still embarrassed about the scars on her back.

Ling was already in bed, shirtless, with a crimson rob with golden outlines in the center. He had on white pants.

"Come on, Chiui." Ling laughed, patting the empty space on the bed next to him. "It'll be alright. We're married now, remember?"

"Right..." Chiui felt her face flush as she got into bed. Her mind was going off into space, since it was going into the gutter.

Ling could tell. "Chiui, I said it'll be alright. He hugged Chiui tight, and Chiui hugged him back. She then gasped when Ling held onto her tighter, and flipped her so he was on top of her.

Chiui immediately had her arms wrapped around his back and Ling had his around her back as well. Ling smirked, and Chiui felt her face flush. Her long red hair was scattered in all directions on the sheets.

Ling then locked his lips on Chiui's. Chiui soon kissed him back, smiling.

The two then decided to kiss into the night.

**Woop! It's finally done! Chapter 18 might be up soon, so stay tuned.**


	18. Shocking Trip

Chiui woke up the next morning to get some coffee. She was tired, since she only got 3 hours of sleep, and her hair was messy. That was usual for the new Empress, though, since she usually had hair like that in the mornings.

She was in the kitchen now, waiting for her coffee to get done. She yawned, and was about to nod off until she saw Lan Fan enter the room.

"Good morning, your Majesty." Lan Fan greeted her, and Chiui replied with a sleepy smile.

"Good morning, Lan Fan." Chiui nodded, and noticed that her coffee was done. Sighing in relief, since it took a while for it to finish, she took a quick sip of it.

Lan Fan was in the mood for coffee as well, and went over to get a cup of coffee herself. She did a double take when she saw Ling's robe on Chiui.

"What?" The redhead seemed to notice. "What is it?"

Lan Fan blinked. "Well...if I'm not mistaken, your Majesty...isn't that the young Lord's robe?"

Chiui almost dropped her coffee cup due to her clumsiness. "Um, yes. I was cold, so I went and grabbed Ling's robe. Why?"

"...Just wondering." Chiui was thrown off by the bodyguard's silent expression now, like there was something that she knew about, but didn't want the Empress to know.

"Hey, sis!" Yosung broke the silence when he walked into the room. Yosung, now being 18 and engaged to Lan Fan, was still taller than Chiui, despite Chiui growing a bit taller after she turned 20 years old. Not to mention that Yosung now had a beard.

"Hey, little brother." Chiui smiled warmly. "How are you this morning?"

"Good." Yosung grinned. He looked around. "Say, where's Ling?"

"Oh, he's getting some sleep." Chiui chuckled, thinking about it. "I guess being the new Emperor of Xing has made him sleepy."

Yosung laughed. "Yeah, that's true...knowing how Ling is." Yosung also became silent now, since he saw Chiui wearing Ling's robe.

"...Are you two alright?" Chiui questioned, looking at Lan Fan, then at her brother.

"W-We're fine! We're fine." The dark-haired couple replied in unison.

"Why don't you go into the living room and relax?" Yosung questioned Chiui, taking her to the said room. "You must be tired as well."

"I am, but Yosung-" Chiui went to say, but her brother was already gone. The redhead blinked in confusion, then exhaled, sitting down on the couch, drinking her coffee.

As she looked out the window, watching the leaves of the sakura trees flow with the wind, she thought about Yosung and Lan Fan.

_What's with them this morning? _Chiui's eyebrows furrowed. _One minute, they're happy to see me. The next, they see me wearing Ling's robe and don't say anything else. _she paused._ Unless they-_

She stopped her train of thoughts immediately. _Oh gosh!_

The handle to her coffee cup almost broke when she came to that realization. Chiui felt her face flush in embarrassment, but it quickly went away when she noticed Lan Fan and Yosung talking in the kitchen.

Chiui hated eavesdropping of all things, since that's happened way too many times in her past, but wanted to know what the two were talking about.

So, leaning her head back, she wasn't able to hear what they were talking about that clearly, but could tell through their hand movements.

Due to their expressions, they looked surprised, and Yosung kept on motioning his hands towards where Ling was, then at Chiui. Chiui's eyes widened.

Lan Fan didn't know what to think, and looked like her usual, embarrassed self. Her eyes then widened as well, and the Empress heard her whisper the words, "You don't think..."

Yosung nodded.

Lan Fan seemed to smile, which quickly transitioned to a grin. Yosung did the same as well.

The next minute, Chiui saw them entering the living room, and the couple hugged her both at the same time.

"I'm so proud of you, sis!" Yosung exclaimed. "So is Lan Fan!"

Chiui's eyes widened; she was completely dumbfounded. "...W-What...?"

"It's a new, royal beginning for you and the young Lord, your Majesty!" Lan Fan exclaimed, knowing that this was big news.

"I don't get what you guys are talking about!" Chiui told them, completely oblivious.

Chiui dropped her coffee cup as she said this. Silence took over the three of them when they heard the cup collide with the wooden floor with a _CRASH!_

"...Oops."

Chiui and Ling, once he was up, and they had breakfast,decided to visit the former Empress.

She was in a retirement home next to the Xing Empire, and it seemed to be working out for her. Even after 3 years have passed since Ling's father's death, she refused to go back to the empire, even though she was relieved to see her son and her daughter-in-law off and on.

"Hey, Mother!" Ling smiled as he and Chiui stepped into the retirement home.

The former empress was reading a book when the two came in. When she saw them, she looked up and smiling, saving the page that she stopped at in her book.

"Hello, Ling and Chiui." she greeted them as she stood up, getting some help from one of her fellow friends.

"How have you been, Mrs. Yao?" Chiui questioned, adding a curtsy. Chiui was wearing a Xingese, crimson colored dress under her pink robe, in which the robe was designed in the same fashion as Ling's.

"I've...been well." His mother replied, coughing. Ling and his Empress noticed, and were concerned. They knew that ever since retired, that an illness has struck her, and is slowly making its appearance.

Ling hoped that this wasn't the same illness that took his father's life, and that if the illness gets worse for his mother, that he hopes that his mother will be able to survive it.

Mrs. Yao's coughing was getting worse, and her friend patted her on the back a couple of times, causing the former Empress's coughing to cease.

"Thank you, Veronica." Mrs. Yao smiled, and the friend nodded in response, going back to her reading. The former Empress then locked her dark eyes on her son's.

"Sorry that I wasn't able to come to the wedding, Ling." she apologized, causing Ling's eyes to widen in shock. "I was bedridden the day you and Chiui here got married. My illness...had just started, and it made me sick the first day."

Ling's expression saddened, and he rested a hand on his mother's shoulder. "It's alright, Mother. You don't have to be sorry for not being able to come to our wedding. Chiui and I both understand."

Mrs. Yao smiled, and Ling hugged her to cheer her up. Mrs. Yao then noticed Chiui acting nervous, since Chiui was starting to feel strange.

"Is something wrong, dear?" Mrs. Yao asked Chiui out of concern, which caused the new Empress to lock her golden eyes on the former Empress's.

Chiui blinked, not knowing that the former Empress noticed her changed expression. "Oh, no, nothing's wrong. It's just that..."

"You are pregnant, aren't you?" Mrs. Yao asked suddenly.

"Uh...how did you know?" Chiui questioned her, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "I don't even know if I even am yet..."

"Well, I guessed due to your behavior." Mrs. Yao explained. "Also, did you two decide to go on a trip for your honeymoon?"

Ling and Chiui looked each other, then shook their heads. "No."

"We decided to stay here." Ling told his mother, and laughed nervously afterwards. "I guess we didn't really decide on a trip to go on for our honeymoon."

became silent for a moment. "Well, going on a trip might help you two out. Your father and I went on a trip somewhere for our honeymoon before coming back here."

"...I see." Ling's mother didn't have to say anymore, since he knew that paperwork and making new laws in Xingese had put a lot of stress on his father when he first reigned Xing...or at least what he found out when he was older.

Chiui and Ling said their goodbyes to the former Empress, and made their way back to the empire.

"What kind of trip do you think we should go on, Ling?" The redheaded Empress asked her husband.

"I don't know yet." Ling told her, in which he looked deep in thought. "But I know that becoming the new Emperor of Xing could be stressful, like my mother had told me before I headed off to Amestris with Lan Fan and Fu."

"Ah, okay." Chiui became silent, then thought of something. "Speaking of Lan Fan, she and Yosung might have some good ideas for our trip."

Ling nodded, and then got a big grin on his face. He suddenly hugged Chiui tight. "I hadn't thought of that! Thank you so much!"

Chiui smiled, and hugged him back. "No problem, Ling."

When they got back to the empire, they saw that Lan Fan was teaching Yosung some sparring techniques outside, since she went through those while growing up in her clan. It seemed that Yosung was getting the hang of it until Ling called his and Lan Fan's names, and he got hit on the side of the face with the bodyguard's foot.

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry!" Lan Fan apologized, and helped Yosung up. Yosung wasn't knocked out, just bruised on the cheek. She then saw Ling and Chiui at the door.

"Oh, hello, sis and Ling!" Yosung greeted the two of them as Ling and Chiui stepped outside. "How did the visit with Mrs. Yao go?"

"It went fine, but 's illness is slowly getting worse." Chiui replied. "Ling and I hope that it's not the same illness that took away the former Emperor's life. But..." she paused.

"But what?" Her little brother asked, curious of the pause.

The redheaded Empress blinked, laughing. "Oh, sorry. My mind drew a blank. What I was saying was that...besides from that, Mrs. Yao had suggested that Ling and I take a short trip away from Xing, since she knows that ruling all of Xing will be hard on Ling the first few days."

"Well, that sounds like a great idea." Lan Fan spoke up. "Where are you and the young Lord planning to go?"

"We don't know yet, Lan Fan." Ling told her. "But we thought that you and Yosung might have some good ideas."

The dark-haired couple looked at each other, then looked back at the royal couple.

"...What about the Antwan Islands?" Lan Fan suggested. "It's not far, and Yosung and I have heard from people around Xing that it is a perfect place to go and relax."

"The Antwan Islands..." Ling said to himself, thinking. "Those islands sound familiar. I think Father or one of the servants might've mentioned it a while ago. I thought those islands were extinct, based on what I heard."

"Well, the people that we got the information from thought that, too. Some just shrugged it off as rumors." Lan Fan told him. "But I do have a bad feeling about this."

"Same here." Ling agreed. "...Because the rumors of those islands being extinct might hold true."

All four of them became silent.

"So it's best if you and Lan Fan come with us to the Antwan Islands, Yosung." Chiui told her younger brother, then thought for a moment. "Most people take vacation at the capital of the Antwan Islands, am I not correct?"

"Yes." Yosung nodded, then raised an eyebrow. "...I...think that the name of the capital is named Fiore, I'm not sure. We'll find out when we get there."

"But the people of Xing will wonder where we've gone to." Ling considered, not having thought of that before. "So we'll need to do an announcement before making our leave."

After the announcement, Ling, Chiui, Yosung, and Lan Fan were escorted onto a train and sent to the first class. That hadn't happened before when Chiui was on the train with them two years ago, or when she was with Ed and the others when they were on missions.

Aside from that: Chiui noticed that in first class, everything was different, with the walls being a golden color, and the seats being more comfortable than the ones in the previous rooms of the train. _I like this room. _Chiui thought to herself.

"Say, Ling." Yosung spoke up, getting the Emperor's attention. "Isn't this the same train we went on to get from Amestris to Xing?"

"No." Ling told him. "This is a different train, one that goes straight to the Antwan Islands. If we had taken the desert to get to the islands, then it would've taken forever."

"...I see." Yosung replied. He remembered his older sister, Chiui, telling him about how she reunited with Ling and Lan Fan, and how Ling had fainted from hunger when they reunited the second time. _I guess that taking the train beats walking across the treacherous desert..._ Yosung concluded that in his thoughts.

The four of them stayed silent for the rest of the train ride. It took them a few hours to get there until Ling spoke up: "We're here."

Chiui and Yosung had both fallen asleep on the train ride, and Lan Fan had to wake them up.

When the Empress and her brother joined Lan Fan and Ling, the two of them were already outside, looking out at Fiore, the capital of the Antwan Islands.

"Wow...this place is beautiful..." Chiui remarked, walking over to Ling. Yosung walked over to Lan Fan.

"Yes, it sure is." Ling replied. "But...we can't be fooled by that just yet. Something seems...fishy here."

"Oh, hello, travelers! Welcome to Fiore!"

The four jumped at the sudden, cheerful voice. Before them stood a young, Xingese business man, who seemed to be in his late twenties, probably early thirties. He was smiling from ear to ear, which creeped Chiui out.

"...Hello, sir." Chiui spoke up, and curtsied. Lan Fan, Yosung, and Ling bowed. "We're here to take a 3 to 4 day trip. Do you know where we can find a perfect place to stay at?"

"Oh, sure." The business man grinned, only making him look more creepier.

The business man then seemed to recognize the type of robes Ling and Chiui were wearing, and the outfits Lan Fan and Yosung were wearing. The odd business man recognized them to be royal clothing.

He started apologizing, "...I'm terribly sorry. I was thinking of taking you four to one of the casual hotels, where the people of the lower Xingese clans take vacation at. But seeing that you four are from one of the higher classes, I will offer you one of the top class hotels! Come with me."

Ling, Chiui, Yosung, and Lan Fan followed the buisness man, unsure of why the business man had acted so strange when he saw their clothing.

Lan Fan and Ling felt an aura pass by them, and stopped for a moment. The businessman seemed to notice.

"Is something wrong, you two?" he asked them.

"No, nothing's wrong." Ling and Lan Fan said in unison, and the business man turned back around, continuing the trek.

"Something doesn't seem right about this man." Lan Fan whispered in a tone to the others that was low enough for them to hear, but not loud enough for the business man to hear. "It seems that...this man must be..."

"An Homunculus!" Ling was speaking in the same tone Lan Fan was using. "But how? I thought that the Homunculi, along with the Father, were wiped out three years ago!"

"That's what I thought too, Young Lord." Lan Fan expressed surprise. "But, it seems that...there must be a new race of Homunculi that we don't know about..."

The four of them, along with the business man, eventually arrived at one of the top class hotels of Fiore, and reserved their rooms for them.

Ling and Chiui were reserved to Room 108, and Yosung and Lan Fan were reserved to Room 112. The group was baffled about Yosung and Lan Fan being reserved to a room that was 4 doors down from them, because Chiui had a bad feeling about this. The other three could tell.

Chiui just got her brother back 3 years ago, when all that time before then, she thought he was dead. She didn't want to lose him again if something bad happened here.

That night, Chiui couldn't sleep, and neither could Ling. Chiui was thinking too much about that weird businessman. Ling was thinking about him as well.

Chiui assumed that Yosung and Lan Fan were feeling the same way.

"...Say, Ling." Chiui spoke up, catching the Emperor's attention. "When we were on that mission that concerned that abandoned house about 5 years ago, Greed had seen that demon with the Homunculus symbol on it before it hit him. Do you think that this businessman...is one of them...?"

"That's what I think." Ling agreed. "The skin of that businessman..looks odd, and it definitely doesn't look like he got a weird-looking tan on his free time. He must have that Homunculus sign somewhere on his body if he is one of them."

"Yes." Chiui sighed, and yawned. Pondering about this odd businessman was making her tired. So her and Ling decided to get some sleep, though the thoughts still bothered them.

The next day, they noticed that the businessman was acting a bit strange than yesterday when he was greeting some newcomers to the islands.

"What's wrong with him today?" Yosung asked, looking over his sister's shoulder. Chiui almost jumped 2 feet in the air, and if she did so, her shoulder would've hit her brother right under his chin.

"Don't scare me like that, Yosung." she warned him, then looked in the direction of where Yosung was looking at, which was at the businessman. "...I don't know what is on his mind today, but I have a bad feeling. I'm sure Ling and Lan Fan have the same feeling as we-Where are they?"

Just a few minutes ago, Ling and Lan Fan were by Chiui and Yosung's side. It took a few times of scanning the perimeter for the siblings to find out that the two Xingese adults were on top of the roof of the building.

"What are you two doing up there?" Chiui called up to them. Ling and Lan Fan didn't reply. Chiui assumed that they were keeping a safe distance from the businessman and see if there is any more odd behavior coming from him.

I "Do you want us to join you two?" Yosung called up, and his fiancee, Lan Fan, assured him that they'll be fine. Besides, the Emperor and his bodyguard were the only ones among the group to sense the Homunculi. They might be able to sense demons.

After the businessman had escorted the family to their rooms, he noticed the group looking at him, and frowned. Chiui recognized the glare he gave them, and the eye of his radiated with a green color.

Ling and Lan Fan seemed to sense the aura again, and they knew that it was, in fact, a demon Homunculus.

lLing and Lan Fan got off of the roof of the hotel, and walked over to Chiui and Yosung, who were waiting for them.

"The aura that we sensed is telling us that the businessman is a demon Homunculus." Lan Fan explained to the two. "The aura had tried to tell us that yesterday, but it wasn't strong enough to get the message through."

"But it seems that, through the glare that he gave us, the aura was able to indentify the creature closer, and that's when it confirmed that the businessman is not what he seems to be."

"Well, that certainly helped out a lot." Yosung exhaled, then went into a train of thought for a second or so. "But how do we stop him? Will we have to wait until he has nothing to take care of?"

"It seems so." The new Emperor sighed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "Demon Homunculi are found to be stronger than the normal Homunculi, but are not strong in terms of smarts and skills."

"I see." Chiui concluded that on capturing the demon Homunculus. "But...I am wondering about the origin of that species. Was it after Kenna had defeated Akuma, or did someone related to that demonic goddess/rival of hers decide to use the demons that they tortured to create a new race of Homunculi?"

The redheaded Empress had a painful feeling that she had guessed right due to Ling and Lan Fan's faces.

"It...seems so, your Majesty." Lan Fan replied after her and Ling were silent for a few minutes. "I don't know how this is possible, considering that when the Homunculi of the Father died, their Philosopher's Stones went with them. Akuma, which I think is the name of that evil goddess, must have some type of magic—dark magic, to be exact, that makes this possible."

"Well, Kenna had told us that Akuma is a pretty advanced villian, considering that she's a demonic spirit that's been alive ever since that entity planet Kenna mentioned-Tigoris-was created." Chiui added. "So that might help us out on this, or not."

So, concluding the conversation, the four came up with a plan, and agreed to wait until midnight.

IIt was now midnight, and the demon Homunculus was out, guarding the hotels while standing at the entrance. He had his dark wings out, which weren't present the first time the group saw them.

Speaking of the group, they were hiding behind a bush that was a few feet away from the demonic creature, and were making sure not to be seen.

Ling had out his sword that he bought at one of the markets of Xing.

Lan Fan had out her small spears, and a sword that Yosung bought her on their engagement day, as a gift.

Chiui had her powers activated and ready, with the fireballs in her hands being small at the moment until the time came...though Chiui felt awkard about being in the purple version of her Empress outfit with her robe on.

Yosung didn't have any powers since Vengeance was no longer a part of him, but thanks to Lan Fan, he had sparring and fighting skills in handy.

"So when are we going to strike?" Chiui whispered to her husband, the Emperor. "We've been here for about three to ten minutes now, and nothing, so far, has happened."

"We'll have to wait a few more minutes." Ling reassured her, taking one of her hands. The fireball Chiui had in her hand moved up to her fingertips so it wouldn't burnt Ling's hand accidentally.

The four of them then remained quiet, until they heard a tiny, but loud sneeze. Ling, Chiui, and Lan Fan froze, and slowly looked at Yosung, who had his hands over his nose.

"Yosung!" they exclaimed.

"What?" Yosung gave them a confused look. "I've been holding onto this sneeze since we came out here-"

The four of them were silent once more, but it wasn't to spy on the demon Homunculus. This time, they were silent due to the demon Homunculus seeing them.

"I knew I was right when I noticed something...not right about you guys..." the demon Homunculus growled. He started approaching the group slowly.

Chiui looked at her brother with a look only he knew: Know-see-what-you-did-Yosung!

Yosung gave her his "I'm sorry!" look back, while raising his hands up in protest.

The four then got ready to fight, and Yosung decided to stay behind his sister.

The businessman soon changed his form, which wasn't the plump body that they saw before. The demon Homunculus was younger, around teenage years in terms of human age. He had on armored attire, as if he was a knight of another realm. He had bright orange eyes, two scars on his right eye and one on his mouth. He had long, dark brown hair put into a low ponytail ,and he had dark bat wings.

He saw the group's surprised faces, and couldn't help but chuckle. "So you're surprised to see my real form, eh?" he raised an eyebrow, putting his hands on his hips.

The four stayed silent until Lan Fan spoke up.

"We thought that the demon Homunculi were dead, along with the other Homunculi that existed 3 years ago." she said this with an angered tone. "So how are you still alive?"

The demon Homunculus's smile soon faded for a couple minutes before he busted out into maniacal laughter.

"Ha! Well, you're right on that one, pretty little lady." Yosung stood up and protected Lan Fan when he heard that flirt come from the demon Homunculus.

"But...I had killed off the rest of the other demons that were being tortured by the Homunculi. I wanted to end their lives so pain will no longer exist with them. Also, it was to get vengeance for my sister, Akuma, and her death. That crimson-haired girl will get what she deserves for killing her..."

Chiui, Ling, Lan Fan, and Yosung knew exactly who the demon Homunculus was refering to, and didn't like the tone he was using.

"What is your name, demon Homunculus?" Ling spoke up, wondering what the demon Homunculus' if his sister was Akuma.

The cold look the demon Homunculus had was transferred to the glare he gave Ling before adding a smirk.

"Oh, I'm glad you asked." he chuckled, and rested his fingertips lightly on his chest, with his palm slightly upwards. The other hand on his hip completed his conceited attitude when the words that Ling used come up. "I happen to be the center of all evil, the one that really created the demons, with my twin sister, Akuma, helping me out."

Chiui's eyes widened, and so did her brother's. "No...it can't be!"

Ling and Lan Fan looked at the two siblings in surprise. They went to ask them why they were shocked, and found out soon enough.

"That's...Lucifer, the guy that we've been reading about in our history books!" Yosung exclaimed. "I thought he was just a dark spirit, flaming with power. But seeing that he's actually an eons-old demon, I can't believe what I'm seeing.

"Me neither..." Chiui was at a loss of words.

Lucifer chuckled once more. "My. You two are quite clever. I take it that you two were the ones that somehow survived that terrible fire many years ago. Akuma told me all about it." Chiui and Yosung didn't say anything to that, so Lucifer continued. "...Well, it's nice to meet some new people that were kind enough to be lured into my trap."

Before the four knew it, the once peaceful Antwan Islands disentegrated in front of their very eyes. Dark wires then reached out towards the group, but they managed to get out in time. Unfortunately, the dark wires struck back, capturing Chiui and Ling, but leaving Yosung and Lan Fan unbinded.

"What...what's the meaning of this?" Chiui yelled at Lucifer. "Why did you use the rumored Antwan islands to lure people here? What is the purpose?"

"Doesn't it seem obvious? It's to get revenge on the person that killed my sister. And I _know _that you and your fellow friends know who that person is." he growled with a cold tone. "Tell me where she is, or you and your newly wed husband will face a rather unpleasant death. Same goes for your friends here."

Time seemed to stop then and there. Chiui and Ling would've fought their way out of this, but they knew that Lucifer will see that as a refusal for his statement, and he'll kill them off.

Suddenly, Ling got an idea, though he looked uneasy while thinking about it. His wife could tell.

The dark-haired Emperor glanced over at her, with his dark eyes locked on hers. Chiui's golden eyes became glassy when it hit her.

Ling knew for sure that this was the choice: _It was now or never. This demon is definitely cruel and won't accept no for answer. He'll just answer with blood and more fury._

Ling gritted his teeth as he tried to find the words to say to Lucifer. Sweat started running down from his temple down his face. He had never faced a situation like this before, where there was only way out, and that was the truth.

"Well?" Lucifer questioned with an impatient tone, arms crossed and tapping his foot in the same manner. "I'm waiting."

"Kenna..." Ling began, but almost hesitated. He knew if he did so, that would be a bad sign. "Kenna...went back to her world, the realm that she originally belongs to."

Chiui, Yosung, and Lan Fan were surprised at what Ling just did, which was reveal where Kenna is. They knew this wasn't good at all, and it was due to Lucifer pressuring him with just a few simple words.

"Oh, is she?" Lucifer chuckled, then rested his hands on his hips, closing his eyes. "Well, that was quite easy to get from such a pathetic human. You, your wife, and your little friends don't fight, do you?" He then stuck on his arms in an upside down, acute angle fashion. "Are you guys wimps?"

Chiui and the others were getting tired of him...and Ling thought it was a good idea to break free from the binding.

Lucifer was too busy laughing at his own words to notice what was happening at first. Ling had drawn out his sword with his teeth, and cut the bindings off of him, then Chiui, with his feet.

Yosung and Lan Fan thought that wasn't possible for dark magic like that to be cut, but at least the royal couple was freed. Lucifer then saw what had happened once the said event subsided, and growled.

"How were you fools able to break of that?!" Lucifer yelled, and started forming a dark orb in his hands. However, the orb disappeared right when it fully formed.

"What the hell...?"

Lan Fan noticed it right away. "He's weak."

The other three looked at her. "How?"

Lan Fan looked at the group, then back at the demon. "The binding spell he used was the last source of his strong power. One theory is that he must've used most of his dark magic to kill innocent people here...or he and his sister used to share a soul—since they're two halves of the same coin—and without one part of his soul, he's weaker than usual."

Ling, Chiui, and Yosung went with the second theory, which seemed correct when they saw dark, pulsing veins appear on Lucifer's hand. The veins slowly progressed down his body, and he fell to his knees as if they gave out on him.

His eyes widened with shock as he realized what was happening. He looked up at the four with saddened eyes, in which it was their turn to be shocked.

The sadness...seemed to be hiding a surprising truth. "...Help...m-me..." he pleaded with a hoarse tone, reaching out his trembling hand toward them. His form suddenly switched to a child's withering soul...and it seemed to be a little kid with no eyes, which were only filled with black.

"What the hell's going on?" Ling questioned in confusion, not to mention horror.

"I don't know..." Chiui was at a loss of words. "...Something very, very odd is happening...I thought...that we were going to fight him, but it seems like..."

"He's fighting with himself." Yosung finished it for her with a gasp as Lucifer went back to his demonic form, and started coughing up blood.

Chiui cringed at how much blood was being expelled out of the demon's body, and she hated to admit that she was starting to feel sorry for him. Ling and the other three couldn't blame her.

They saw something that was devestating...a child...trapped in a demon for what seemed to be of an enternity...dying in the worst possible way...

"We've got to help him!" Chiui exclaimed, and went to step forward to help Lucifer out, but Lan Fan stuck out her automail arm to stop the Empress in her tracks.

"It's too late, your Majesty." The dark-haired bodyguard told Chiui. "What has been done cannot be stopped."

They then watched in silence as the demon's soul, not to mention the child's soul, dissolve into thin air as their terrifying screams were mixed together in their last moment on Earth passed.

The Antwan islands soon deteriorated, causing the four to jump. All that was left was land.

"Well...one thing's for sure." Chiui began to speak. "We're not going here again..."

"You said it, sis." Yosung agreed, feeling fear in his heart. "This was..."

"A honeymoon trip gone haywire." Ling and Lan Fan finished it off.

And with that, the four tried to find a way to get back to Xing.


	19. Just 2 More Months to Go

"Don't worry, Chiui. Lucifer is now in a better place...wherever that is for his race."

Yosung was trying his best to counsel his Empress sister, who was saddened when she was thinking back at what happened at the islands. Ever since they got back to Xing, she couldn't get the image of the tortured child's soul out of her head.

"Yosung's right, your Majesty." Lan Fan added. "Just...stop thinking about it. It'll help you out."

Chiui sighed. "I've tried, Lan Fan, but I can't seem to get it out of my head. It's...just horrible to think about what horrible things the child must've faced before becoming the core of evil himself..."

The three were interrupted by a door opening. It was Ling, and he was finished with his paperwork that he had to sign when they got back.

But that didn't surprise them. It was Roy with the mustache that surprised them.

"Cousin Roy?" Chiui exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I'd thought I would like to pay a visit here to Xing." Roy smiled, twisting his moustache. "I haven't seen you and the rest of the group in a while."

"Oh." Chiui got a smile on her face after saying that word, but it was soon broken when she saw the moustache. "Oh dear god..." she muttered.

"What?" Roy slightly tilted his head to the side. "What seems to be the problem?"

"...You...cousin...have a moustache!" The Empress exasperated as if it was such a horrible thing to see before her eyes.

"Yeah...why?"

"Please. Shave it!" Chiui gritted her teeth. "You look handsomer without it. Riza thinks you look handsome without it."

Roy blushed. "Oh, right." he laughed nervously. "I had told Riza that I would shave this beard if she accepted my hand in marriage, but I haven't found the courage to ask her that yet—"

His cousin elbowed him on the arm, followed by a wink. "Well, you should ask her to marry you. You've loved her ever since you two met, right? Also, Riza would make an awesome First Lady."

Roy chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "I'm sure she will, cousin. I'm sure she will." He then turned around, and went to make his leave. But he then noticed that he had some paperwork to sign back in Central. "Well, I must make my leave now, even though it was short." he smiled at Chiui. "I'm sure that you will be a great Empress."

"Thank you, cousin." Chiui smiled warmly, and then watched as Roy left their sight.

Chiui and Ling then turned towards Yosung and Lan Fan.

"Well, if you and the Young Lord don't have any more plans to go on a honeymoon, your Majesty, I guess we're staying here for it." Lan Fan spoke up.

Ling pondered on that. "...Speaking of that, Chiui and I will go on a one week trip somewhere that is not on an extinct island." Ling laughed nervously. "You're free to come along with us."

"Oh, no, it's fine," Yosung grinned, and rested a hand on Lan Fan's shoulder. "Lan Fan and I will stay here. We're looking forward to doing some training, since I am planning to become one of your bodyguards in the future, Ling."

Ling and Lan Fan knew why he said that...it was to replace Fu after the tragic death he and Lan Fan witnessed. Lan Fan was still trying to cope with her grandfather's demise, but it still hung onto her, no matter how many times she tried to forget it. Fu was also like a father-figure to Ling,being the oldest bodyguard of the two. Ling still felt guilty for letting Fu die by Bradley's hands.

Lan Fan nodded in agreement to Yosung's comment, though he could tell that she was worried about the Emperor and the Empress.

As Chiui and Ling were making their way to make some plans for next week, the female bodyguard stopped them, with her arm straight out and her palm opened. Her palm quickly folded as she lowered it down.

"Young Lord..." she began, "I want you and your Majesty to be careful, knowing that Yosung and I won't be with you on your vacation."

"We'll be alright, Lan Fan." Ling reassured her, resting a hand on her head, making a bantam blush cross Lan Fan's cheeks. Even though Lan Fan has moved onto Yosung, she had a slight crush on Ling, still. But she still had her undying devotion towards him, Chiui, and Yosung.

Lan Fan just nodded in response, with a knowing smile. She gasped when Yosung gave her a peck on the cheek to cheer him up. The female bodyguard giggled, and hugged Yosung. Yosung laughed, hugging her in return.

Ling and Chiui had finally found a place to go for their vacation: Amestris. They didn't know why they hadn't thought of that before. They found a hotel that offered top class, and planned to stay there for one week. They didn't notice anything strange, which was a relief.

It was now 7 months after they returned back from their honeymoon. Chiui noticed that her stomach was getting bigger as she was sitting down on the throne, relaxing. Ling wanted her to take it easy, since the redheaded Empress was having morning sickness off and on due to her pregnancy.

Getting to her brother and Lan Fan, they were already finished with their training when the royal couple returned. Yosung and Lan Fan have been sparring off and on during the past 7 months, and Yosung has proven to be a skilled bodygaurd. He just has to go through some exams run by Ling, which will take 2 months to do.

Chiui exhaled as she looked out into the sunset sky, admiring the beautiful, tangerine scenery. Chiui had always loved sunsets, they were so relaxing and calming. The gazing at the said scenery was quickly interrupted when she heard footsteps in the distance.

She turned to see that it was Ling, who sat down on his throne. His throne was bigger than hers, which Chiui didn't understand why. She guessed that it was part of Xingese architecture.

"So how are you feeling, Love?" Ling questioned with curiosity as he softly rested a hand on Chiui's hand. Chiui smiled warmly, looking away for a moment.

"I'm feeling fine, dear." Chiui sighed once more, then looked down at her stomach, gently resting her hands on it. "I can feel the twins kicking."

Ling laughed heartedly. "Good to know!"

Chiui and Ling had found out a few days ago that they were going to have twins from their doctor. Chiui was wondering why her stomach was getting big, and wasn't low like she thought it would be-her and Ling were expecting a son, a Prince. But Chiui was relieved to know that she'll be giving birth to two children...possibly two Princes, Princesses, or a Prince and a Princess.

The Empress then blinked in confusion when she felt something rub up against her belly. She saw to be her husband, Ling, who had his cheek rubbed up against while bending down on one knee, hugging her stomach.

"Aaah! I can't wait!" Ling squealed like a little boy when he gets a Christmas present. "We're going to be starting a family, a whole new story together. The babies will be so adorable with their hands and feet. We ought to show them to the rest of the group when they're older."

Chiui couldn't help but chuckle. Ling was totally acting like Maes Hughes, someone Chiui would've loved to meet. But she had heard so much about him from Roy, especially with Mae's habit of obsessing over his family.

The two then stood up after Ling released his hold on the redhead Empress's large stomach. Chiui wrapped her arms around Ling's neck as Ling rested a hand on the upper part of her back, soon moving the other one onto the back of her head. Small strands of Chiui's red hair stuck out between his fingers.

The royal couple shared a passionate kiss before pulling back a few minutes later.

"I love you, Chiui." Ling told her with a smile in the same manner that they just shared together.

Joyful tears emerged into Chiui's eyes, making them slightly glassy. "I...love you, too, Ling." The two then hugged each other,with Chiui shifting her balance slightly from foot to foot as time passed.

"Only two more months to go, Ling. I can't wait."


	20. Birth of a New Generation- FINAL CHAPTER

**Hey, YullenStarDust here! I hope that the previous chapter wasn't too short, since it felt like that to me. **

**Anyways, I can't believe that I'm at the final chapter. This'll be the first fanfiction I have completed in the long list of ones I have created and abandoned /bricked**

**Hope you like! ^ u ^**

It is now two months after since Chiui and Ling shared their excitement of their new life together...making it 9 months.

Chiui's stomach was a tad larger than it was those said months ago, and it was now September 15th of 1920. Chiui was having less morning sickness, but Ling and the others noticed that she was craving food off and on, and had to stop her. It would be bad for the babies.

"So how long will it be until Chiui hits the end of her term?" Ling questioned the doctor during their visit.

The Xingese doctor, who happened to be a female, sighed. "Well, Chiui has already hit the end of her term already, Emperor Ling. How long have you been waiting to see if it is Chiui's time to go into labor?"

"A few days." Ling replied. "The fifth of January marks the day we spent our honeymoon and...well..."

"I know, I know." The doctor chuckled. "I have a husband myself. There's no need to be flustered." she then looked at her clipboard, adjusting her glasses. "Well...since it is the 15th of September, Chiui will mostly like give birth on the 16th or 17th, approximately. It might occur later than that."

"I see." Ling and Chiui both said at the same time, and didn't even catch it. Chiui was starting to become a little worried, and Ling could tell.

"Ling...this is going to be a struggle for me." Chiui sighed nervously, resting a hand on her forehead. "I've never been pregnant before, but I've gotten used to it since I've been carrying our babies in there for 9 months. I wonder what it will be like to give birth...it must be painful."

"Trust me, it is." The doctor muttered, and Ling and Chiui heard it.

Chiui hugged Ling, who hugged her in return. Chiui had moved her arms down to Ling's middle part of his waist when they pulled back. Ling rested his hand softly on his lover's cheeks.

"It'll be alright, Chiui." The dark-haired Emperor reassured his wife. "You'll get through it, I know you can. Even though you might yell curse words and say things you don't really mean...you'll be alright."

Ling then gave her a kiss on the forehead, which made Chiui feel a little better.

"I suggest that you get a lot of rest to relieve any stress that you're feeling, your Majesty." The doctor bowed, and waved to the royal couple as they were making their way out of the building. "Good luck!"

Chiui and Ling thanked the doctor for the compliment, and then were out of the doctor's sight as they headed back to the Empire.

Yosung and Lan Fan were taking a break from sparring when the two arrived, and were having some green tea. Lan Fan seemed a bit flustered in what Yosung was saying, and Yosung laughed, thinking that Lan Fan's expression was adorable.

"Hey, guys," Chiui spoke up, waving to them. The dark-haired couple looked up, and waved back to her and Ling. "We're back!"

"Awesome!" Her little brother grinned, and stuck out his arms. "So what did the doctor say about your pregnancy?"

Ling and Chiui looked each other for a brief moment, nodded with knowing smiles on their lips, then looked back at Yosung and Lan Fan.

"Well, the doctor said that the babies will be coming either tommorow or the day after." Chiui announced. "She added that it depends; the babies might come later than that."

Yosung and Lan Fan grinned at the same time, happy to hear the news! Yosung hugged Chiui and Ling both, and so did Lan Fan.

"We're so proud for you and Chiui, young Lord." Lan Fan congratulated her Emperor. "You'll have a new Prince or Princess of Xing!"

"I know." Ling smiled. "I can't wait!" he then rested a hand on Chiui's stomach, and Chiui giggled.

"Yeah, I can't wait, either." Chiui agreed, and let out an exhale of happiness.

The four were silent for a few minutes until Yosung remembered something. When he snapped his fingers, Chiui and the other two Xingese adults jumped.

"Oh, and if you guys are hungry, we can go to a restaurant." Yosung grinned. "I have something I would like to tell you guys!"

Chiui smirked, knowing how her little brother is when he has to tell some good news. "Oh, I wonder what it's about, brother."

"You'll see." Yosung grinned once more.

Yosung and Lan Fan had decided on a ramen restaurant to go to. Chiui wasn't really that hungry, since she ate a few hours ago. Ling, despite eating a few hours ago as well, didn't mind getting a few bowls of ramen and wolfing them down. Yosung and Lan Fan just ordered one bowl of ramen.

Once the four of them were finished, and the waiter had come to take the money for the food, Yosung clapped his hands to get Lan Fan, Chiui, and Ling's attention. It worked, except that Yosung belched afterwards.

Blushing massively out of embarrassment, the dark-haired 18 year old covered his mouth, his blue eyes widened.

The two ladies couldn't help but giggle, but Ling gave Yosung a high five. "Nice one, man!"

Yosung exhaled. "...Thanks...but sorry about that," he added a nervous laugh to that sentence. "But, if I don't get interrupted by belching again while I speak, I will make my announcement now."

Chiui, Ling, and Lan Fan waited patiently for his announcement.

"So..." Yosung started, "I am happy to be the new bodyguard of Ling, alongside Lan Fan. But ever since Lan Fan and I got engaged...uh...I was planning to start a family with her in the future."

If Lan Fan had a drink beside her, she would've spitted it on out in total shock. Chiui's jaw dropped. Ling just stared at Yosung, shocked.

"Get out of here!" His older sister said jokingly, then added with true astonishment, "Are you serious?!"

Yosung nodded. "Of course. Since Lan Fan and I will be your childrens' uncle and aunt, even after we marry, I'm sure that you'll love being an aunt if Lan Fan and I decide to have any kids." He then glanced over at Lan Fan to see what she thought, and blinked in confusion.

Lan Fan was blushing massively, which reached to her ears. She had her face hidden with her hands. She was speechless, not to mention completely embarrassed that Yosung had just made that announcement _out loud. _Thank God nobody else heard him besides Chiui and Ling.

"Yosung, that was kind of straight out..." Lan Fan said at last, and gasped softly when Yosung took a hold of one of her hands.

"But I mean it, Lan Fan." Her dark-haired fiancee told her. "When I first met you, I've always thought of you as a beautiful woman, and you're so cute with your shyness! I can see why you had the hots for Ling in the past, since he is handsome." He knew Lan Fan thought that Yosung was handsome, but not as handsome as Ling Yao. "But...starting a family will be a miracle for the both of us! We might get to teach our kids about Xingese martial arts or alkahestry with Mei, if they're interested in that!"

Lan Fan thought over what Yosung just said, and smiled warmly. "Well, I'll think about it, Yosung." She had to admit that she was starting to like the idea of being a mother.

"Is that all the announcements you have, little brother?" Chiui smiled, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

Yosung nodded. "Yep. I don't really have anything else more to say."

So with that, the four made their way back to the empire.

It was now September 18th, 1920. Chiui had expected to give birth yesterday, but that didn't seem to be the right date.

Chiui had just finished eating breakfast, and thanked the servant that offered to pick up her, Ling, Yosung, and Lan Fan's plate. Chiui still felt hungry after her meal, but resisted it.

She was now in the bathroom, checking her appearance in the mirror. She takes off her purple eyeshadow and lipstick when she goes to bed or takes a bath, since she is worried about it harming the water or the bed sheets. She was fixing up her mascara, making her eyelashes slightly longer than usual. She thought that would be fine for today.

Chiui then felt the babies kicking inside of her stomach, and chuckled.

"They must be excited today." Chiui remarked, due to how much the babies were kicking. She then heard something unusual, and looked down. "What the hell...?"

She saw that there was a stain on the floor, or so she thought at first. "I just went to the restroom earlier. Why did that-" her eyes widen with complete shock as she felt her knees give in as she felt pain in her stomach.

"LING! I THINK YOU NEED TO HURRY TO THE BATHROOM!"

Chiui's yell echoed across the Empire, causing Ling to nearly fall off of his chair that he was using at his desk. Yosung and Lan Fan heard it as well when they were sparring, and dashed into the Empire.

They followed Ling as he made his way to the bathroom.

Chiui's breath had become altered by the time they got there. She could feel the babies inside kicking more than usual.

"Oh god..." Yosung exclaimed. "Chiui, are you in labor?"

"WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?" she snapped, causing Yosung and the other two to step back. "...Sorry." Chiui added. "It just...hurts..."

"Hang in there, Chiui!" Ling told her as he helped her get to the nearest hospital. Lan Fan had a hand rested on Chiui's shoulder for comfort. "We'll get there in time!"

"...So how's Chiui doing, doctor?" Yosung asked in concern as Chiui was going through labor in the hospital room. Ling had his eyes covered, waiting next to Yosung. Lan Fan just had her arms crossed, with one of her hands under her chin. She was thinking about Chiui, worried since Chiui was cussing while giving birth.

"She's doing alright, Yosung." The doctor assured him. The doctor wasn't the one Chiui and Ling were talking to two days ago. This one is a male. "Doctor Tumaki is trying his best to calm her down. Giving birth to twins, I'm sure, is a true pain."

"How's Chiui? Is she alright? Are the babies alright?" Ling questioned anxiously, his patience broken. He then walked over to the window to the room to see how Chiui was doing, and it was too late for the doctor and the other couple to stop him.

Yosung saw Ling's color drain from his face as he fainted, and ran over to him. Lan Fan joined him.

"Young Lord!" Lan Fan exclaimed, in which her words were mixed in with Yosung's, "Ling!". "Are you alright? What did you see?"

"I saw something...that is not part of my language of this country..." Ling said weakly. "Okay, bye bye now..." he then closed his eyes.

The doors then opened as Doctor Tumaki stepped out. Thankfully, Ling regained his consciousness just in time for Yosung and Lan Fan to help him up.

"You're free to see for yourselves." Doctor Tumaki smiled, with a nervous hint to it, since he had to clean up the blood that got on his hands during Chiui's labor moment.

Ling, Lan Fan, and Yosung exhaled in shock, and their eyes beamed. Ling went first, and ran over to Chiui.

He saw that she...well, looked very tired, and had slightly dark circles underneath her eyes. But she wore a calm and relieved smile. He then looked down at what she was holding in her arms, and his dark eyes widened.

"It's alright...Ling..." Chiui told him with a weak tone, adding a laugh in the same manner. "They're...finally here..."

In her arms was two newborn babies...the twins that they were expecting. The boy was obviously the one being kept warm in a tiny, blue blanket, and the girl was the one with the pink blanket.

The babies were crying like crazy, and were looking around...even though their eyes have not yet opened.

Ling carefully took their baby boy in his arms, while Chiui held onto their baby girl. He cradled the baby boy in his arms, with a warm smile on his face.

Yosung and Lan Fan were at the door, seeing what had happened. They decided to join in on the precious moment. They got to hold the baby twins in their arms.

Chiui and Ling were crying tears of joy.

"So...what do you want to name them?" Chiui asked once her tone went back to its normal state. "It's alright if you don't want to decide now, we can wait later."

"Well," Ling spoke up in between talking like a dork to the baby boy in his arms, "I'll leave that to you."

Chiui smiled, and sighed, thinking. "...The baby boy's name should be...Rai Jr., in memory of my grandmother, Rai. And..." she said, looking at her baby girl in her arms. She then noticed that she was stumped on what the girl's name should be.

"What about Rei?" Ling suggested.

"Oh, that's a wonderful idea." Chiui smiled. "You've always wanted to have a Princess with that name...even if you didn't expect to have one." she chuckled.

"Yeah, that's true." Ling laughed with her, then sighed as well.

This began their new story together, as a family...and they were prepared for what life had to bring for the next generation.

-THE END-


End file.
